Water Dynamics in Turbot (Scophthalmus maximus) Flesh during Baking and Microwave Heating: Nuclear Magnetic Resonance and Magnetic Resonance Imaging Studies

Abstract

Turbot is a valuable commercial species because of its high nutrition content. Water redistribution during heating was attributed to temperature-induced protein denaturation and structural shrinkage. Therefore, knowledge about water dynamics provides valuable information related to flesh physical properties (weight loss, color and shear force). Herein, water dynamics in turbot during baking and microwave heating were elucidated by using low field nuclear magnetic resonance (LF-NMR) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Four distinct water populations with relaxation times of 0.20–0.60 ms, 2.00–6.00 ms, 30.00–60.00 ms, and 250.00–560.00 ms were identified. The dramatic variation of water populations during baking and microwave heating indicated protein denaturation and structural shrinkage, which was further verified by MRI and microscopic examination. Furthermore, good linear correlations were observed between NMR parameters and weight loss, color and shear force. The results revealed that the water mobility and distribution in turbot provided valuable information for quality analysis during baking and microwave heating.

Impact of cooking on the sensory perception and volatile compounds of Takifugu rubripes

“…As shown in the previous report , with the increase of the heating temperature on surf clam, the myofibril stretched over to form a streak pattern, and then underwent dilaceration, contraction and separated into the fragmented structure. Meanwhile, with the increase of the cooking time, the gap between fibres was also more apparent under the microscope (Xia et al, 2017), which was also convinced by the instrumental texture profile analysis on the hog maw that the chewiness decreased apparently as cooking time prolonged (Zheng et al, 2021). Therefore, for RTR, the highest temperature and longest heating time produced more fragments with less water, dominated the high values and the positive correlation between chewy, fibre mouthfeel attributes and water loss.…”