The Rheological, Cooking, and Digestion Characteristics of Meat Noodles as Affected by the Composite Formulation of...

This study investigates the effects of various meat sources, including beef, pork, lamb, and chicken, on the quality and digestion characteristics of meat noodles with a meat content of 50% and compares them with traditional meat-free noodles made from semolina flour. Results indicated that the addition of meat significantly reduced the dough's elasticity (p < 0.05) and affected some of the cooking properties to varying degrees, except in chicken noodles. Among the samples, chicken noodles exhibited better cooking quality than others, with a cooking loss of 2.1%, a broken strip rate of 6.7%, and a water absorption rate of 30.0%. Conversely, the incorporation of other meat sources adversely affected cooking performance. In vitro digestion assessments revealed that all meat noodles exhibited lower digestion rates compared with wheat flour noodles, which is important for increasing satiety in modern diets. Notably, chicken noodles had a larger average particle size of digested chyme and exhibited slower release of free reducing sugars and free amino acids, likely due to the higher myofibrillar protein content and myosin proportion, which may facilitate the formation of a denser composite structure with glutenin in semolina flour. The myosin provided a more unfolding nature, which may enhance hydrophobic interactions and disulfide bonds with glutenin, thereby contributing to the superior performance. The deeper insights into how the meat source affects the digestive and physical properties of meat doughs and noodles are promising for the design and development of meat-incorporated foods.