EVALUATION OF THE PROPERTIES OF THE RED-TAILED CATFISH (Phractocephalus hemiliopterus) AS A POTENTIAL SPECIES FOR OBTAINING SURIMI AND DERIVED PRODUCTS

Objective. To assess the potential use of red-tailed catfish (Phractocephalus hemiliopterus) meat for the production of surimi and derived products. Materials and methods. Red-tailed catfish fillets where minced and combined with water (1 part fish to 3 parts water) to form surimi paste. Kamaboko was prepared by steaming the molded paste (60°C) for 15 minutes; Chikuwa was prepared by rolling the Surimi and baking (80°C) for 10 min. Total protein was determined by the Kjeldahl method, WHC and TPA. Moisture content was determined by the AOAC (985.14) method and myofibrilar protein quality was evaluated by SDS-page electrophoresis. Results. Protein content of red-tailed catfish meat was 17.90±0.79% h.b., water content 81.65±2.2% h.b and CRA 66.25±3.53% h.b. Compared to surimi, the derived products had 18.66±1.35% h.b., of total protein equivalent to myofibrilar protein, which influences gelling due to the increase in WHC. TPA increased (á=0.05) the chewabililty of the paste (51.04 N.s) compared to kamaboko (480.80 N.s); giving cohesive attributes to the derived products compared the adhesive properties of the surimi paste. The SDS-page electrophoresis showed that the myosin quality in the derived products was retained after freezing, while in fillets and in surimi it deteriorated. Conclusions. The quality of the myofibrilar protein of red-tailed catfish meat suggests technological potential of this Amazonian species that may represent a business opportunity for the production of surimi products of high nutritional value and exportable quality