The mechanism of egg white protein to enhance the thermal gel properties of giant squid (Dosidicus gigas) surimi

In this paper, the interaction between egg white protein (EWP) and giant squid surimi was regulated by changing the ratio of surimi to EWP, and the mechanism of EWP on the gel properties of giant squid surimi was analyzed. The results showed that when the proportion of EWP was 16: 1, the hardness and springiness of surimi gel were the highest, reaching 645.5 g and 1.258, respectively. The gel strength reached 0.634 kg, the cooking yield of surimi gel increased by 27 % and the water loss decreased to less than 10 %. A significant increase in the proportion of fixed water and a decrease in the proportion of free water indicated that mixed surimi improved the “trapping” ability of water molecules, induced the formation of a more ordered “cage”-like structure, and significantly increased the water holding capacity and whiteness of surimi gels.