Sodium Alginate Properties and Its Application in Low-Fat Meat Products

July 18, 2022
2:55 pm
Application Fields, Company News, Product Knowledge

Sodium alginate is a natural polymeric plant polysaccharide extracted from seaweed with the molecular formula (C6H7O8Na)n, mainly composed of the sodium salt of alginate, which is a copolymer of α-L-mannuronic acid (M unit) and β-D-gulonic acid (G unit) linked by 1,4-glycosidic bonds and composed of different proportions of GM, MM and GG fragments.

1. Sodium Alginate Properties

1.1 Properties of sodium alginate solution

Dissolving sodium alginate in water can form a viscous gel. When high valent metal ions (except magnesium and mercury) are gradually added to the solution of soluble alginate, the viscosity of the solution will be increased until a gel is formed.

1.2 Properties of sodium alginate gel

Sodium alginate has unique thermal irreversible gelation properties, of which calcium alginate gel is the most widely used alginate gel.

When sodium alginate encounters calcium ions, it can rapidly generate thermally irreversible gels.

The mechanism of gelation is that the carboxyl groups on the molecular chain of sodium alginate can be cross-linked with calcium ions to form an "egg-box"-like mesh structure to retain water and form a gel of certain strength. Since this reaction is a chemical process, the heat of the gel formed is irreversible.

Sodium alginate forms a variety of thermally irreversible gels of different strengths, from soft to rigid, depending on calcium concentration and temperature.

2. Physiological Functions of Sodium Alginate

Alginate is an edible and non-digestible large polysaccharide, which has the following functions in the gastrointestinal area, such as water absorption, adsorption, exchange of cations and gel filtration.

Lowering blood pressure, blood lipids, lowering cholesterol and preventing fatty liver.
Impeding the absorption of radioactive elements and helping to eliminate heavy metals from the body.
Increasing satiety and promoting healthy weight loss.
Accelerate intestinal peristalsis and prevent constipation.

3. Properties of Sodium Alginate Application

Thickening

When sodium alginate is dissolved in water, it can form a viscous solution, which forms a soluble complex with the protein in the solution to increase the viscosity, and inhibit protein precipitation to form a stable and homogeneous system to thicken the product, and improve the stability of the product.

Stabilizing

Sodium alginate has good stability, as a stabilizer of ice cream, it can control the formation of ice crystals and improve the taste of ice cream; In many dairy products, such as refined cheese, whipped cream, dry cheese, etc. it can prevent the adhesion of food and packaging by using the stabilizing effect of sodium alginate; it can be used as a covering for dairy products, which can make it stable and prevent the cracking of frosting pastry.

Texture Improving

Sodium alginate can improve the adhesion of products, improve the uniformity and water-holding effect of the internal organization of products, and prolong the storage time.

Thermal Irreversible Gelation

The unique functional property of sodium alginate is its ability to react with Ca2+, or other multivalent cations except Mg2+ to form thermal irreversible gel. It can be applied in jellies, puddings, gummy candies, meat products and all kinds of bionic and vegetarian foods.

4. Application of Sodium Alginate in Meat Products

Sodium alginate can effectively reduce the water loss of meat products during steaming and improve water retention.

The property of forming thermal irreversible gel is good for improving the quality of many meat products.

After forming the gel, sodium alginate has good chewing palatability and has the texture of meat tissue, so it can be used in meat products to improve product quality, reduce production cost and improve product quality while increasing product yield.

5. Sodium Alginate as a Fat Substitute

With the acceleration of consumer upgrading and the arrival of the era of health, nutrition, health, low-fat and other more diversified consumer demand has become the mainstream of the current consumer trends.

Advantages of sodium alginate as fat substitute

As a polysaccharide from the sea, sodium alginate can reduce the fat content in food while maintaining the original taste, flavor and quality.
Products made from it not only provide similar taste characteristics to traditional whole foods, but also reduce dietary fat intake.
Application of sodium alginate fat substitute in sausage products can effectively improve the water retention of muscle gel, hardness and elasticity of the intestinal body.
Sodium alginate fat substitutes applied in reconstituted fats can effectively improve the hardness and brittleness of the product with easy to control operation.
Sodium alginate fat substitutes applied in various reconstituted meats can significantly improve water retention, enhance product tenderness and crispness, and give good appearance to the products.

Sodium Alginate Fat Substitute VS Other Fat Substitutes

Compared to other fat substitutes that can form irreversible gels, sodium alginate fat substitutes can form cold gels and have better emulsification and oil retention, making the application easy and effective.

Sodium alginate fat substitutes in meat products can form complex network-like structures through protein-protein and polysaccharide-protein interactions, cold and heat induced gels, and improve the cooking loss and water retention of the system, and regulate the hardness, elasticity and toughness of the product, thus providing the possibility of its application in the improvement of the quality of low-fat meat products, and bringing new business opportunities for meat companies in low-fat health. It also brings new business opportunities for meat companies in low-fat health.