Texture of Fish Muscle

ABSTRACT Morphological and chemical aspects of fish muscle texture are reviewed and differences from red meat are pointed out. A unique feature of fish muscle is its low connective tissue content which accounts for easy disintegration of fish flesh on heating. Thus, the muscle fibers are the main textural elements in cooked fish meat. Because of this, most of the popular texture testing instruments are not applicable to fish. Best results are obtained with the thin blade shear/compression cell. Texture of fish muscle is affected by the species, age and size of the fish within the species, and nutritional state. Postmortem factors influencing texture include glycolysis, rigor mortis and the accompanying contraction of the muscle often leading to the separation of muscle segments (gaping), temperature profile during storage, temperature of cooking, pH and presence of NaCl.