51A-3

J. JACZYNSKI and J. W. Park. OSU Seafood Lab and Dept of Food Science & Technology, Oregon State University, 2001 Marine Drive #253, Astoria, OR 97103

JUSTIFICATION: The current method for pasteurization in the seafood industry employs thermal processing. From a safety standpoint, this process is necessary to maintain healthy food. However, excessive heat, when applied to foodstuffs, causes textural and colors alterations. The two attributes, color and texture, are the most important organoleptic characteristics for surimi seafood. The longer pasteurization the larger extent of detrimental changes to both color and texture. Therefore, there is a vital need to be able to predict these changes for various industrial settings while maintaining safe product.

OBJECTIVES: To develop a model based on experimental data that would predict color and textural changes in surimi seafood. The model has been verified.

METHODS: Un-pasteurized surimi seafood sticks were obtained from a local manufacturer. They were kept in ice slush during transport and experiments. The project was divided into two parts: heat transfer, and color and texture. Surimi seafood sticks were vacuum packed before thermal treatments to mimic industrial practices. Various sizes of packages at different water temperatures (95, 85 and 75°C) were tested. In the heat transfer study a CR10 datalogger (Campbell Scientific) was employed in conjunction with a computer. For color measurement a Minolta colorimeter (CR300) was used. To monitor textural changes, Sintech 1/G was employed.

RESULTS: Based on the data, a model for color and texture changes in surimi seafood as a function of various temperatures and different package sizes was constructed. The model shows how the values for color and texture change under different conditions.

SIGNIFICANCE: The developed model predicts textural and color changes of sample depending upon the applied settings, such as package size, temperature, and time spent in the water bath. From a practical standpoint it enables optimization of the two sensory attributes in order to increase product quality.