1Hiroshima Prefectural Food Technology Research Center, Hiroshima 732-0816, 2Graduate School of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hokkaido 041-8611, Japan
Salted surimi pastes were prepared by grinding walleye pollack surimi with 2.7% NaCl and a 30% water-pregelatinized starch mixture. The salted surimi paste was set at 10°C for 0-3days, followed by heating at 90°C for 30min. During the setting, the breaking strength of the control paste without pregelatinized starch increased, accompanying the formation of cross-linked myosin heavy chains. The addition of pregelatinized starch decreased the setting response and depressed myosin heavy chain cross-linking. Furthermore, the heat-induced gelation at 90°C was also depressed. Amylopectin was responsible for the inhibitory effect by pregelatinized starch on setting. Amylose, unlike amylopectin, increased the breaking strength of the surimi gel.