DISCUSSION OF THE BINDING QUALITY OF MINCED MEATS BASED ON THEIR RHEOLOGICAL PROPERTIES BEFORE AND AFTER HEATING

Raw fish meat and three muscle groupings of cockerel meat were analyzed for total nitrogen, myofibrillar and sarcoplasmic proteins, non-protein and residual nitrogen, fat, pH, moisture and hydration capacity. Stress relaxation measurements were made on both raw and heat coagulated samples. Tensile strength measurements were made on heat coagulated samples. Using breaking energy as an index of binding, myofibrillar protein content and hydration were tentatively related to binding quality. Equilibrium modulus values offered an indication of the presence of crosslinking after heating. The rheological behavior of fish meat could be explained by a seven element model and that of cockerel meat by a five element model before heating. An analysis is presented of the mathematical treatment of rheological measurements and their relationship to binding quality and chemical composition of the tested samples.