Characteristics of meat batters with added native and preheated defatted walnut

Effects of incorporation of native and preheated defatted walnut on the physicochemical, emulsifying and rheological properties of meat batters, as affected by final heating temperature were investigated. Replacing meat protein with native defatted walnut in meat product formulations reduced (P < 0.05) gel strength and emulsifying properties and hence the firmness and stability of meat batters but enhanced water- and fat-binding properties and hence the yield of a processed meat product. However, incorporation of preheated defatted walnut, in addition to improving (P < 0.05) water- and fat-binding properties during thermal treatment, improved the gelling ability of myofibrillar proteins, probably because the preheating of the defatted walnut promoted interactions between walnut proteins and muscle proteins. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.Peer Reviewe