Effect of carrageenan on the quality of pork jerky

Carrageenan was added to the pork jerky to improve their quality.The texture, water activity, water content and yield of the pork jerky were determined to evaluate the effect of carrageenan on their quality, especially for the texture properties.Results showed that carrageenan could improve the texture properties of the jerky.It could significantly reduce the water activity (p<0.05) and increased the storage durability of the jerky.After the addition 0.4% carrageenan, the hardnessand springiness, as well as chewiness of pork jerky increased to 1853.1g, 0.991, 1292.1, seperately.Water activity decreased to 0.713.Also, water content and yield grew to 24.19%, 53.24%.Compare with the blank control, the experimental group showed significant improvement in the textural properties, storage stability and juiciness (p<0.05) .