Effects of transglutaminase on the water-holding capacity and microstructure of minced beef

In order to make full use of low-value minced beef, the effect of transglutaminase treatment on the beef sausage based on minced beef were investigated.On the base of single factor experiments, response surface analysis was applied to study the factors of beef sausage.The results showed that: the optimum conditions for cooking loss of minced beef were determined as 0.3% transglutaminase concentration, 20min reaction time and 30℃ reaction temperature. The optimum conditions for water- holding capacity were determined as 0.4% transglutaminase concentration, 20min reaction time and 30℃ reaction temperature, and under these conditions, the major indexes of the obtained product could be significantly improved, whose microstructure was more regular.It could be concluded that appropriate transglutaminase treatment was a promising technology since it could improve the water retention and microstructure of minced beef.