Effect of wooden breast myopathy on water-holding capacity and rheological and gelling properties of chicken broiler breast batters

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of wooden breast myopathy on water-holding, rheological, and gelling properties of chicken broiler breast batter. As to water-holding capacity, wooden breast myopathy significantly increased cooking loss and thawing loss of meat batter compared with that of a normal sample (P < 0.05). With regard to rheological properties, the viscosity, storage modulus, and loss modulus of meat batter gradually reduced as wooden breast myopathy worsened. Similarly, lightness, hardness, gumminess, and chewiness of heat-induced meat gels reduced with wooden breast myopathy worsening. Severe wooden breast myopathy significantly reduced lightness, hardness, gumminess, and chewiness of heat-induced meat gels (P < 0.05). Water distribution of heat-induced meat gels showed that the relaxation times of T(2b1), T(2b2), and T(21) generally increased, whereas T(22) gradually decreased when wooden breast myopathy worsened. The corresponding proportions (P(2b1), P(2b2), and P(21)) of T(2) populations (T(2b) and T(21)) generally decreased, and the P(22) gradually increased. Severe wooden breast myopathy significantly reduced the relaxation time of T(22) and increased proportion (P(22)) of T(22) peak (P < 0.05), but no significant difference was found in immobilized water of heat-induced meat gels. The light microscopy revealed the looser structure of gels with many big bubbles in wooden breast groups when compared with that of normal breast heat-induced gels. It is concluded that the incidence of wooden breast myopathy worsens water-holding capacity and rheological and gelling properties of breast batter of chicken broiler, reducing the further processing property.