Using of phosphate and transglutaminase -: Influence to qualityparameter of cooked ham

Also the combination of two effective processing aids does not allow the production of perfect cooked hams from ham raw materials with initial pH-values = 5,8. Nevertheless it was possible to minimize the typical defects. In agreement with the results from cooked sausage it was found that the phosphate dosage had a positive influence on the yield (HAMMER, 1998). The transglutaminase mainly influenced the consistency. In this test series deliberately the lowest and highest concentrations of transglutaminase recommended by the manufacturer were compared. This was done without phosphates, with the lowest concentration of phosphate that was effective in a former test series and a high phosphate concentration that shows an optimal effect on the yield (MULLER et al., 2000). On the basis of the presented results it should be possible in practice, by using a narrower pH selection of the hams, to control the desired yield via the phosphate concentration and the consistency via the amount of transglutaminase and, simultaneously, minimize the typical defects of cooked hams.