RESTRUCTURED BEEF MADE WITH GREEN BANANA FLOUR

The use of green banana flour in meat products is an alternative for the development of healthier foods, with improvements in nutritional and technological aspects, since the population has been increasingly concerned with health and diet. The objective of this research was to develop and characterize structured bovine meat prepared without the addition of green banana flour or with partial (25%, 50%, 75%) or total (100%) replacement of the fat by it, seeking to elaborate a product that could be used as a consumption alternative for different individuals in a usual diet. The experiments were carried out in the laboratories of the Departments of Basic Sciences and Nutrition, both of the Faculty of Biological and Health Sciences, as well as in the laboratories of the Institute of Science and Technology, all at the Federal University of Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri-UFVJM, Campus JK, in the municipality of Diamantina - MG. Five formulations of restructured meat were produced, and for this, beef (chuck) and backfat (when present) were ground in a meat grinder, with a five millimeter disc. After grinding, the ingredients were weighed and the beef, bacon, green banana flour, salt, seasoning mix (dehydrated garlic, chives and parsley) and black pepper powder were mixed manually until complete homogenization. Then, the entire mass was pressed and shaped in a manual hamburger shop, obtaining products with a net weight of 60 g each. They were wrapped in plastic PVC film, placed in polyethylene bags and stored in an upright freezer at -5ºC until the physical-chemical analyzes were carried out. Its physicochemical texture characteristics were evaluated, more specifically elasticity. The texture profile (elasticity) was evaluated through the TPA test (Texture Profile Analysis), using the texture analyzer (Stable Micro Systems, model TA-XTplus, United Kingdom) and the Exponent Lite software of the equipment itself. Then, 10 mm thick and 25 mm diameter samples were baked on a preheated plate at 200°C until the internal temperature of the restructured reached 75°C. The P36 probe (36 cm in diameter, stainless steel, long stem/normal base) was used at a constant speed of one mm/s, penetrating 50% of the original height of the sample and returning to its surface at a speed of 0.5 mm .s -1 . After this first cycle, the sample remained at rest for five seconds, then starting the second compression. Since the replacement of fat by 75% and 100% of unripe banana flour did not result in changes in elasticity.