| Abstract: | The quality of surimi made from fish aged on ice for up to 14 days was evaluated by compression test on a model product. Water holding capacity (WHC) and pH in the fish mince, and protein content, pH, salt solubility of the myofibrillar proteins and hydration index of the insoluble proteins (HUP) in the surimi, were determined. Their interrelationships and utility as indicators of surimi quality were evaluated by a multivariate data analysis. The main tendencies of variation among the chemical parameters were examined by the use of principal component analysis. Correlations between the chemical parameters (X-variables) and the gel strength of surimis (Y-variable) were studied by the use of partial least squares regression. Age of the raw material and protein content of the surimi seemed to be the main determinants of the gel strength. Among the remaining variables only HIIP showed a potential value as indicator of the gel strength. WHC and HIIP seemed to reflect two different water retention properties of the proteins. |
