39D-14

J. A. RAMíREZ¹, R. Rodríguez-Sosa¹, I. A. Santos¹, and M. VáZQUEZ². (1) Depto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Alimentos, Universidad Autónoma de Tamaulipas, Apdo. Postal 1015, Reynosa, Tamaulipas, 88700, Mexico, (2) Dpto. Química Analítica, Nutrición y Bromatología, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Area de Tecnología de Alimentos, Escuela Politécnica Superior, Lugo, 27004, Spain

JUSTIFICATION: Striped mullet (Mugil cephalus) is one of the few species of marine shore fish with a worldwide distribution. The smell of this fish is not acceptable for the consumers because this fish easily absorbs odorous compounds from the environment. Therefore the economical value of striped mullet is small. The processing of striped mullet to obtain surimi gels can be a good alternative to use this abundant resource. To our knowledge, no reports are about surimi gels using striped mullet.

OBJECTIVES: Our objective was to assess if striped mullet (Mugil cephalus) can be a good resource to obtain surimi gels.

METHODS: Fresh striped mullet was obtained from a fish market in Mexico. Fish were processed as usually to obtain surimi gels. 250 g of surimi samples were selected partially thawed at room temperature, cut into small pieces and chopped. Thermal treatments for setting (25ºC, 35ºC or 45ºC) using several temperatures (1, 3 or 5 h) followed by cooking at 90°C for 20 min were performed. After cooking, tubes were immediately cooled at 4-5°C. Each gel was analyzed in a modified Brookfield digital viscometer. Shear stress and true shear strain at failure were calculated.

RESULTS: Shear stress varied over a wide range (26-100 Kpa) meanwhile shear strain varied within the narrow range 1.35-0.67. The most favorable conditions were defined by intermediate values of temperature (35ºC) and the high value of time (5 h) obtaining values of 100 kPa and 1.35 for shear stress and shear strain, respectively. The value of shear stress obtained in this work compares very well with those reported in the literature.

SIGNIFICANCE: These results suggest that surimi gels production can a good alternative to use this abundant resource. Further studies are needed to improve the mechanical properties.