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. 2021 Mar 10;59(2):666–676. doi: 10.1007/s13197-021-05060-1

Quality properties of chicken meatballs prepared with varying proportions of woody breast meat

Xiao Sun 1,✉, Jinjie You 1,2, Ligen Xu 1,2, Di Zhou 1, Huazhen Cai 1, Clay J Maynard 3, Juan P Caldas-Cueva 3
PMCID: PMC8814150  PMID: 35153310

Abstract

The objective of this study was to explore the effect of woody breast (WB) on quality characteristics of chicken meatballs paired with the feasibility of its inclusion. Cook loss (CL), color (CIE L*, a*, b*), texture (hardness, springiness, chewiness and resilience), low-field NMR (bound water, immobilized water, and free water), microstructure, and sensory characteristics of chicken meatballs with different WB inclusion levels (0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, 100%) were analyzed. The results showed that the impairment of product quality traits such as CL, color, texture (hardness, chewiness), free water, microstructure, and sensory scores (appearance, organization, total score) increased as the percentage of WB meat increased in the product formulation, particularly when the WB incorporation level exceeded 25%. Indeed, cook loss, L*, a*, b* parameters, bound water, and immobilized water increased when the WB inclusion level was higher than 25% (P ≤ 0.05). However, free water, sensory characteristics, hardness, and chewiness parameters decreased (P ≤ 0.05). The microstructure of chicken meatballs also changed as the proportion of WB meat increased. Even though data suggest that the inclusion of WB meat up to 30% could be feasible to produce acceptable chicken meatballs, the optimal maximum incorporation rate of WB meat into chicken meatball recipes was 25% based on economic feasibility and final overall quality.

Keywords: Woody breast, Chicken meatballs, Meat quality, Sensory evaluation

Introduction

To meet the increasing demand of market consumption, the poultry industry has increased the growth rate of broilers by using high breast-yielding strains that may be causing the development of growth-related myopathies such as the woody/wooden breast (WB) condition (Sihvo et al. 2017; Tijare et al. 2016). Indeed, the WB condition has been a prominent meat quality problem in the global poultry industry over the past decade (Kuttappan et al. 2016; Caldas-Cueva and Owens 2020). Compared to normal breast fillets, WB fillets exhibit muscle fiber degeneration along with pale-yellow surface colors, which are characterized by a distinct hardness typically detected by tactile evaluation (Sihvo et al. 2017; Sun et al. 2021). Previous research has suggested that severe WB has distinct "ridges" bulging out of the caudal region of breast fillets (Mudalal et al. 2015) and tend to have higher fat content and connective tissue as well as lower levels of protein (Sihvo et al. 2017). The histological and chemical differences typically observed in WB fillets result in decreased water-holding capacity (WHC) or higher cook loss, higher shear values, lower protein extraction, and noticeable eating quality differences attributed to altered sensory characteristics (Mudalal et al. 2015; Soglia et al. 2016; Tasoniero et al. 2016; Tijare et al. 2016; Maxwell et al. 2018; Bowker and Zhuang 2019). The increasing incidence rates of WB result in significant economic losses to the global poultry market due to the unnecessary condemnations, decreased meat quality and yield coupled with a continued reduction in consumer acceptance (Kuttappan et al. 2016; Petracci et al. 2019; Caldas-Cueva and Owens 2020).

In the aforementioned context, poultry producers and processors urgently need cost-effective alternatives to mitigate the negative economic impact caused by the WB condition (Caldas-Cueva and Owens 2020); for example, the incorporation of WB meat into processed poultry product formulations such as chicken patties, nuggets, and deli loaves (Qin 2013; Caldas-Cueva and Owens 2019; Caldas-Cueva et al. 2020a, b). The quality aspects of chicken products mainly include cooking performance, texture characteristics, and sensory attributes (Zhang et al. 2020). Chen et al. (2018) and Caldas-Cueva et al. (2020b) reported that the exclusive incorporation of WB meat into ground meat products such as patties and meatballs decreased the overall quality of these products. Zhang et al. (2020) also reported that WB myopathy had a negative impact on WHC, rheological, and gelling properties of chicken meat batters. Furthermore, Xing et al. (2017) found that the addition of salt can affect the functional and gelling properties of meat batters. Nevertheless, the optimization of the addition of WB meat into further processed product recipes needs to be evaluated, taking into consideration influential factors such as the incorporation proportion, the meat particle size, and the inclusion of appropriate non-meat ingredients for industrial applications. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effect of WB meat inclusion on quality characteristics of chicken meatballs as well as the determination of its optimal incorporation rates to produce acceptable products.

Materials and methods

Breast meat selection and chicken meatballs preparation

Chicken breast fillets were purchased from a commercial broiler processing line and subsequently sorted for the degree of hardness or WB severity according to the subjective sorting scale proposed by Tijare et al. (2016) and Sun et al. (2018). Breast fillets were divided into 2 main categories: normal (NORM), and severe WB (SEV). NORM fillets were very soft with a smooth appearance and good flexibility throughout, whereas SEV fillets were very hard and firm throughout the fillet with an obvious ridge in the caudal region. For this study, 10 kg of classified NORM and SEV fillets were packed in vacuum sealed bags, stored at 4 °C, and transported to the laboratory for further analysis.

Upon arrival to the laboratory, all visible fat and connective tissue were trimmed by excision. After trimming, a stepwise inclusion of WB (0%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100%) was determined for this project with recipes for each treatment provided in Table 1. Then breast fillets were minced though a meat grinder equipped with a grinding plate (7 mm). 30-g meatballs were produced using the technique described by Song et al. (2017) with slight modifications. Chicken meatballs (diameter of 25–30 mm) were cooked in an 85 °C water bath until the internal core temperature reached 78 °C, and then cooled to room temperature (23 °C). A total of 80 chicken meatballs (n = 16/treatment) for each replication were prepared for further quality analysis, and three replications were carried out in this study.

Table 1.

Chicken meatball formulations prepared with NORM and SEV fillets at varying inclusion levels

Ingredients (g) Inclusion level of WB
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
NORM meat 400 300 200 100 –
SEV meat - 100 200 300 400
Water 60 60 60 60 60
Starch 24 24 24 24 24
Soy protein 10 10 10 10 10
Additives (phosphates, sodium erythorbate, glutamate) 2 2 2 2 2
Salt 5 5 5 5 5
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500 g of meat sample in each treatment were prepared for each replication

NORM normal breast, SEV severe woody breast

Cook loss

Chicken meatballs were weighed and recorded (M0) before being packed into food preservation bags and vacuum sealed. Sealed bags were then placed in an 85 °C-water bath to begin thermal processing. Samples were cooked until a final internal temperature reached 78 °C. Meatballs were then cooled to room temperature and reweighed (M). Cook loss (CL) was then calculated using the following equation:

CooklossCL,%=M0-MM0×100

M0 refers to the mass of chicken meat balls before cooking and M is the mass of cooked chicken meat balls (Madruga et al. 2019).

Color evaluation

The color of chicken meatballs (CIE L* a* b*) was performed on the external surface of each ball with a color difference instrument (Minolta Camera Co., Osaka, Japan). Prior to each measurement, the apparatus was standardized against a white plate (white board, No. 20933026; CIE L* = 96.86, CIE a* = −0.15, CIE b* = 1.87). Measurements were repeated three times at various locations for each sample and subsequently averaged (Chen et al. 2018).

Texture profile analysis (TPA)

After color determination, meatballs were prepared to conduct texture profile analysis (TPA). Each meatball was cut into a single cube (10 mm × 10 mm × 10 mm) from the central region. The TPA attributes of each meat ball were determined using a texture analyzer fit with a cylindrical probe (TA-XT. plus, Stable Micro system Ltd., Surry, UK., P/36R) according to the protocol described in Song et al. (2017). The procedure for texture analysis was set to the following: pre-test speed 1 mm/s, test speed 4 mm/s, post-test speed 4 mm/s, with strain set to 30%, and trigger force set at 5 g. Each sample was compressed twice, and the average values for hardness, springiness, chewiness, and resilience were determined.

NMR transverse relaxation (T2) measurement

Prism shaped samples (10 mm × 5 mm × 8 mm) were cut from each meatball for all WB inclusion treatments and then placed in the bottom of a nuclear magnetic tube (diameter of 60 mm). Water property distribution of WB was carried out using a Niumag Pulsed NMR analyzer and experimental parameter settings were set according to Tasoniero et al. (2017). The low-field NMR measurements of the samples were determined using Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill (CPMG) sequences with the following settings: the main frequency and offset frequency were 25 Hz and 411,671.61 MHz, respectively. The samples were collected 104,020 times with eight repeating scans and a sampling frequency of 200 kHz. The T2 measurements were performed with a τ-value of 300 μs. The number of scan repetitions was set to 32. In the obtained NMR spectra, the relaxations time (0.1–10 ms), (10–100 ms), and (100–1000 ms) were represented as T2b, T21, and T22, respectively. In addition, the water content (bound water, immobilized water and free water) was calculated by the ratio of peak area to the corresponding relaxation time period (T2b, T21, T22) and to the total area of the relaxation time period (0–1000 ms). The relative area ratios were calculated by the equation:

P=SSmax

where P refers to the ratio of peak area; S refers to the area of the peak graph corresponding to the relaxation period; and Smax refers to the total area obtained by integrating the peak graphs under three relaxation times in the spectrogram.

Microstructural of chicken meatballs

Three meatballs were then prepared from each treatment. Two small cubes (5 mm × 5 mm × 5 mm) were cut from each sample, and embedded using the optimal cutting temperature compound, and then transferred onto glass slides after microstructural samples were sliced at 10 μm of thickness using a microtome (Sakura Finetek USA, Inc., Leica, Germany). The microscopic examination of meatballs was carried out using a Carl Zeiss microimaging microscope (Carl Zeiss, Gottingen, Germany). Analysis was performed by a 200 × microscope and microscopic images were captured and recorded for each treatment (Zhang et al. 2020).

Sensory evaluation

Sensory evaluations of meatballs were analyzed according to Madruga et al. (2019) with slight modifications on sensory parameters. Samples were prepared in meat cubes (10 mm × 10 mm × 10 mm) and evaluated using a quantitative-descriptive analysis (QDA) method by a trained panel consisting of 10 panelist. Meatballs of each WB inclusion were tagged and placed randomly for serving portion. Each evaluation was made by each individual evaluator without contact and communication. For repeatability and to maintain a new palate between samples, a small mouth rinse with purified water was conducted 2–3 times before and after each sample evaluation. All participants were asked to fill out sensory forms to evaluate the appearance, organization, and flavor of each sample with 7 different scores, which were −3, –2, –1, 0, 1, 2, 3 represented as extremely dislike, very dislike, relatively dislike, average, relatively like, very like, very like, very like, respectively. Appearance included color and product smoothness. Organization included product formability and section structure uniformity. Flavor included hardness, flavor, and peculiar smell of the sample. Description and grade for appearance, organization, and flavor of samples is shown in Table 2 according to the process described by Zhuang et al. (2009).

Table 2.

Sensory determination standard for chicken meatballs

Sensory attribute Indicators Reference scalea
Appearance Color and product smoothness 3,2 = Pale yellow-gray
1,0 = Gray-Partial white
–1,–2 = Partial white-pale
–3 = Pale
Organization Formability 3 = Intact and free of cracks
2,1 = Intact, with a few cracks
0,–1 = More crack
–2,–3 = Poor integrity, split
Structure uniformity 3,2 = Smooth and uniform
1,0 = Even cut surface, a few pores
–1,–2 = The cut surface is rough, and the porosity is obvious
–3 = The cut surface was damaged seriously and there were many particles
Flavor Hardness, flavor, and peculiar smell of the sample 3,2 = The chicken has a strong flavor
1,0 = No obvious chicken flavor, no odor
–1,–2 = A whiff of chicken feathers
–3 = Chicken feathers smell heavy
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aThe reference and intensity for basic taste and texture were from Zhuang et al. (2009). The scales were developed for this study in 7 different scores, which were –3, –2, –1, 0, 1, 2, 3 represented as extremely dislike, very dislike, relatively dislike, average, relatively like, very like, very like, very like, respectively

Optimal incorporation of WB meat

For the optimal inclusion of WB meat, a gradient experiment was conducted with a ± 5% gradient difference, and the indexes were determined by meat quality parameters with significant differences in the above experiments. The optimal application of WB is the maximum ingredient amount to maintain the quality of chicken meatballs. Sample preparation for chicken meatballs (n = 40) was the same as described in the above steps.

Statistical analysis

Statistical analysis of the results from this study were carried out using SPSS 25.0 software (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). Measured results were expressed as mean ± SD. Due to the experimental design, meat quality measurements (CL, color, and texture attributes of TPA) and sensory evaluation data were analyzed separately. The main effect in this study was the inclusion amount level of WB into chicken meat balls (0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, 100%). When necessary, means were then separated by Tukey's Honest Significant Difference test with a significance level set at P ≤ 0.05.

Results

Cook loss

Cook loss (CL) were different among inclusion levels of WB meat (P < 0.05, Table 3). These CL levels were similar when no WB (0%) or 25% WB was added, which were 17.18 ± 0.65% and 17.72 ± 0.71%, respectively. CL increased (P < 0.05) as WB meat proportion increased into the product formulation. Meatballs containing 50% of WB meat showed higher CL compared to that for samples containing 25% of affected meat (P < 0.05), whereas no differences were observed in CL levels between meatballs produced with 75% and 100% of WB meat (P > 0.05), but both were significantly greater than the 50% group (P < 0.05). The greatest CL was 29.92 ± 0.26% with 100% of WB inclusion while the lowest CL was 17.18 ± 0.65% with no WB (0%) inclusion.

Table 3.

Meat quality attributes of chicken meatballs prepared with varying inclusion levels of woody breast (WB) meat

Measured parameters WB inclusion level P-value
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
Cook loss 17.18 ± 0.65c 17.72 ± 0.71c 23.98 ± 1.73b 27.69 ± 0.34a 29.92 ± 0.26a  < 0.05
Color
 L* 71.45 ± 0.14c 72.63 ± 0.09b 72.51 ± 0.32b 72.64 ± 0.22b 75.24 ± 0.44a  < 0.05
 a* –0.45 ± 0.10b –0.48 ± 0.07b –0.60 ± 0.08a –0.69 ± 0.13a –0.70 ± 0.02a  < 0.05
 b* 16.57 ± 0.42c 16.23 ± 0.32c 16.79 ± 0.12b 17.29 ± 0.09a 17.30 ± 0.12a  < 0.05
Water properties
 Bound water 0.0011 ± 0.0002d 0.0012 ± 0.0004c 0.0012 ± 0.0003c 0.0014 ± 0.0003b 0.0015 ± 0.0002a  < 0.05
 Immobilized water 0.9838 ± 0.0023c 0.9849 ± 0.0039c 0.9852 ± 0.0019c 0.9901 ± 0.0025a 0.9894 ± 0.0024b  < 0.05
 Free water 0.0151 ± 0.0020a 0.0136 ± 0.0039ab 0.0114 ± 0.0019ab 0.0087 ± 0.0020b 0.0081 ± 0.0025b  < 0.05
Sensory attributes
 Appearance 4.00 ± 0.27a 3.13 ± 0.23b 2.75 ± 0.16b 2.50 ± 0.19b 2.63 ± 0.18b  < 0.05
 Organization 3.63 ± 0.18a 3.63 ± 0.14a 2.88 ± 0.13b 2.50 ± 0.19bc 2.13 ± 0.23c  < 0.05
 Flavor 3.50 ± 0.27a 3.25 ± 0.16a 3.25 ± 0.25a 2.50 ± 0.19b 1.63 ± 0.18c  < 0.05
 Total score 11.13 ± 0.30a 10.00 ± 0.27b 8.88 ± 0.23c 7.50 ± 0.19d 6.38 ± 0.32e  < 0.01
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Means ± SD within the same row for the same test item bearing unlike superscript letters (a–e) are significantly different (P ≤ 0.05)

Color evaluation

Results of the external surface color (CIE L* a* b*) for meatballs are presented in Table 3. The CIE L* value was significantly greater in the 25% WB group than the no WB (0%) group. CIE L* values between the 25%, 50% and 75% group had no significant difference (P > 0.05), which were 72.63 ± 0.09 and 72.51 ± 0.32 and 72.64 ± 0.22, respectively. The CIE L* values were significantly higher than all other groups when WB was included at 100% (100% > 75% = 50% = 25% > 0%, P < 0.05). The minimum and maximum CIE L* values were 71.45 ± 0.14 and 75.24 ± 0.44 with no WB (0%) and 100% WB inclusion, respectively.

The WB inclusion rate had significant effects on CIE a* (P < 0.05). However, a low quantity of WB inclusion (25%) had no significant influence on the CIE a* value (P > 0.05). When the addition amount of WB increased more than 25%, the CIE a* value of the chicken meatballs increased (0% = 25% < 50% = 75% = 100%,P < 0.05). In addition, the CIE a* value had no significant difference between the 50%, 75% and 100% groups. The minimum CIE a* value was –0.45 ± 0.10 with no WB (0%) inclusion.

CIE b* was significantly impacted by WB inclusion (P < 0.05). The CIE b* value had no significant differences between the no WB (0%) and 25% (P > 0.05 groups), which were 16.57 ± 0.42 and 16.23 ± 0.32, respectively. When the incorporation level of WB meat was more than 25%, CIE b* showed an increasing tendency (0% = 25% < 50% < 75% = 100%, P < 0.05). The lowest and greatest CIE b* values were 16.23 ± 0.32 and 17.30 ± 0.12 with 25% and 100% WB inclusion, respectively.

Texture profile analysis (TPA)

The results of textural characteristics are shown in Fig. 1. All TPA values (hardness, chewiness, springiness, and resilience) were different among WB inclusion percentages (P < 0.05). The hardness values decreased as WB inclusion increased. When the inclusion level was greater than or equal to 50%, the hardness significantly decreased (0% = 25% > 50% = 75% > 100%, P < 0.05). Similarly, the tendency of chewiness results was comparable to hardness. Springiness was different between no WB (0%) and 75% (0% < 75%, P < 0.05), with no differences observed between the other groups. The resilience of meatballs had no difference among 0%, 25% and 50% WB inclusion (P > 0.05), but when the addition amount was more than 50%, the resilience increased first and then tapered off (100% < 0% = 25% = 50% < 75%, P < 0.05). Overall, the meatballs had no significant differences for textural characteristics between the 0% and 25% treatment groups (P > 0.05).

Fig. 1.

Fig. 1

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Texture parameters of chicken meatballs prepared with varying inclusion levels of woody breast (WB) meat. Means for the same test item bearing unlike superscript letters (a–c) are significantly different (P ≤ 0.05)

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) transverse relaxation (T2) measurement

Figure 2 shows the relative water distributions for cooked meatballs with different inclusion rates. As seen in this figure, NMR relaxation measurements of meatballs had three types of water, a minor component between 0.1 and 10 ms (T2b), a major component between 10 and 100 ms (T21) and a final component between 100 and 1000 ms (T22), which represent bound water, immobilized water, and free water, respectively. Figure 2 also shows that the T2b of different WB inclusion levels found two peaks beside no WB (0%) represented as T2b1 and T2b2, respectively. The peak of T21 relaxation curve is shifted to the right and peaking values were decreasing with the increase of the amount of WB addition. T22 shifted to the right with different WB application.

Fig. 2.

Fig. 2

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Representative distribution of NMR T2 relaxation times of chicken meatballs prepared with varying inclusion levels of woody breast (WB) meat

Table 3 shows the peak area ratio from different WB inclusion rates. The peak area proportion of the three types of water (bound water, immobilized water, and free water) is the ratio of the peak area to the total area for each of the corresponding relaxation (T2b, T21 and T22) periods. This data reflects the relative content and variation trends of the three kinds of water found between the different treatments. Bound water increased significantly with total WB inclusion (100%) compared to the no WB (0%) added treatment (0% < 25% = 50% < 75% < 100%,P < 0.05). There was no significant difference of immobilized water among the 0%, 25%, and 50% groups (P > 0.05). However, the immobilized water of chicken meatballs increased as WB inclusion exceeded 50%. The 75% group expressed the greatest value of immobilized water which was greater than that for 100% group (0% = 25% = 50% < 100% < 75%, P < 0.05). With respect with free water, there was a significant change in water content between no WB (0%) inclusion and the 75% and 100% groups (P < 0.05). Furthermore, there was no significant difference between all other groups (P > 0.05). The free water decreased significantly as WB was added past 50% (0% < 75% = 100%, P < 0.05).

Microstructural of chicken meatballs

The light microscopic structures of meatballs under 100-fold microscopic examination are shown in Fig. 3, in which A, B, C, D, E represents 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, 100% inclusion of WB, respectively. The microscopic structures clearly depicted the intact and uniform structure of meatballs with no WB (0%) addition. The microscopic structure of meatballs with 100% WB inclusion showed significantly visual differences compared to the 0% group. When the inclusion amount was more than 50%, holes of varying sizes can be clearly detected in the images. The area and number of holes in the meatballs with 100% WB are obviously higher than those for other treatments.

Fig. 3.

Fig. 3

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Microstructures of chicken meatballs prepared with varying inclusion levels of woody breast (WB) meat. A 0%; B 25%; C 50%; D 75%; E 100%

Sensory evaluation

Sensory evaluation results of meatballs are presented in Table 3. Meatballs containing 100% WB meat had lower scores of overall appearance when compared to no WB (0%) added samples (0% > 25% = 50% = 75% = 100%, P < 0.05). The maximum appearance score was seen in the sample containing 0% of WB (4.00 ± 0.27). In addition, organization scores differed among WB inclusion rates (P < 0.05). Organization values for meatballs were similar when no WB (0%) or 25% WB was added (P > 0.05), whereas these scores decreased (0% = 25% > 50% > 100%, P < 0.05) for samples containing incorporation levels higher than 25%. Flavor scores were similar among 0%, 25% and 50% WB groups (P > 0.05). However, when the inclusion level of WB meat exceeded 50%, flavor scores decreased (0% = 25% = 50% > 75% > 100%, P < 0.05). The overall sensory scores decreased as the WB inclusion rate increased (0% > 25% > 50% > 75% > 100%, P < 0.05).

Optimal application of WB

Data analysis for the optimal application of WB in meatballs was conducted based on the above experimental results. These outcomes showed a significant decrease of multiple quality parameters when the inclusion level of WB exceeded 25%. Therefore, 25%, 30%, 35%, 40% and 45% were set as the experimental gradient for verification test. The CL, TPA (chewiness and hardness), and sensory attributes (total score, organization, and appearance) were selected as indicators for verification based on the above results. The findings from the analysis for the optimal application of WB are presented in Fig. 4. The chewiness of meatballs did not change when the inclusion levels of WB were 25%, 30%, and 35% (P > 0.05). When the incorporation proportion surpassed 35%, a significant decrease in chewiness was observed (45% < 40% < 30% = 25%, P < 0.05). In addition, the hardness of meatballs was different between samples from 30 and 45% groups. Sensory evaluations (total score, acceptance, and organization) coupled with the overall acceptability of product decreased when the addition amount exceeded 30% (P < 0.05). Furthermore, CL significantly increased as WB inclusion level increased, whereas 25% and 30% groups maintained a comparable CL (25% = 30% < 35% = 40% < 45%, P < 0.05). Therefore, the incorporation of WB meat up to 30% could be considered to replace normal lean meat in commercial chicken meatball formulations without causing significant quality changes in the finished product.

Fig. 4.

Fig. 4

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Measured parameters of chicken meatballs prepared with varying inclusion levels of woody breast (WB) meat. A CL Cook loss; B Hardness of TPA. C Chewiness of TPA; D Sensory evaluation scores. Means for the same test item bearing unlike superscript letters (a–d) are significantly different (P ≤ 0.05)

Discussion

Water holding capacity (WHC) has shown to be the most important quality attribute of meat products for consumer acceptance (Zhuang and Bowker 2018). Multiple methods have been assessed to evaluate WHC, but CL is considered an accurate method for evaluating WHC in cooked meats (Zhang et al. 2020). Chen et al. (2018) reported that chicken meat products containing WB meat lead to a net decrease in WHC (significant increase of CL). In the present study, CL also increased as WB inclusion surpassed 25%. These results were consistent with previous studies that reported increased CL levels in WB products in comparison with normal samples (Tijare et al. 2016; Chen et al. 2018; Caldas-Cueva et al. 2020a, b). Some authors have also suggested that WB forces a decrease of free water binding with extracted proteins as a result of chronic muscle fiber degeneration (Soglia et al. 2016; Petracci et al. 2019). Therefore, the excessive addition of WB in chicken meatballs could lead to a higher CL compared to normal meatballs. Samples containing WB meat at levels lower than 25% did not show quality defects in terms of WHC. Additionally, the extrapolated analysis suggested that WB inclusion could be extended to 30% without affecting the CL of the finished product.

Previously, NMR has been considered an objective and efficient method to detect WHC in meat products and explain abnormal problems caused by different water distributions (Tasoniero et al. 2017; Pang et al. 2020). In the current study, three water components T2b, T21, and T22 were detected using NMR. These three measurements reflect bound water, immobilized water, and free water, respectively (Fig. 2). Bound water represents the water tightly associated to macromolecules within the musculature (Tasoniero et al. 2017).

In the current experiment, increasing the WB inclusion percentage led to a higher amount of bound water (T2b, Table 3, P < 0.05). This significant increase in bound water is important for sensorial properties after a product has been thermally processed. According to Zhang et al. (2020), when assessing meat gels, increasing the severity of WB generally increased the total bound water content with no significant differences between classifications. The authors also suggested that this increase of bound water may be attributed to loosely bound water to molecular proteins resulting in shifting water properties. The combination of the current data and that seen in meat gels may explain bound water similarities between all severe fillets. In addition, the peak T21 shifted to the right as WB inclusion increased. This trend indicated that immobilized water gradually shifted to free water. Hence, free water was easily lost during thermal processing leading to an increased cook loss or poor WHC. Tijare et al. (2016) found that WHC was lower in intact WB fillets compared to normal breast fillets. Previous studies also report that cooking leads to the destruction of muscle structure and increases protein denaturation, which can influence quality traits in chicken meat products (Stratakos and Koidis 2015). Moreover, poor WHC in WB could be considered the main factor affecting the quality of chicken meatballs. However, the WB inclusion level up to 25% had a slight impact on the water distribution of chicken meatballs. Therefore, NMR results indicate that the inclusion of WB at relatively low proportions could be a feasible option for commercial chicken meatball formulations.

In addition to impacting sensorial characteristics, WHC is closely related to the texture characteristics of chicken products. Tasoniero et al. (2017) reported that hardness increased in WB fillets with longer relaxation time as water was trapped into the myofibrillar matrix. However, the opposite trend was found in the current study, which means that the overall hardness of meatballs decreased, whereas the relaxation time was longer as WB incorporation level increased into the product formulation. In addition, previous research has suggested that gelling properties of WB meat batters were different compared to normal samples (Zhang et al. 2020). Hence, the hardness of WB may be related to the changes in muscle structure or state. Previously, Velleman et al. (2017) reported that the chewiness of products may be related to the nutrient content (protein, fat, collagen) of chicken meat. For the current study, as nutrient content may have changed among treatments, a noticeable change in chewiness was noted. The stepwise increase in the WB inclusion resulted in a decreased chewiness of the product, which may be due to the difference in muscle reticular structure associated with the lower soluble protein content of WB compared to NORM meat (Xing et al. 2017), which leads to the difference in masticability. Pietrasik (1999) also found that protein content changes affected WHC, hardness, gumminess, and chewiness of comminuted scalded sausages. Furthermore, springiness and resilience have been related to the reticular structure of protein and soluble collagen content (Zhao et al. 2014; Zhang et al. 2020). In this study, the hardness and chewiness of chicken meatballs were stable when the WB inclusion levels was less than 25%. On the contrary, springiness and resilience had no change when WB inclusion was less than 50%. Therefore, an appropriate amount of WB supplementation (< 25%) had no significant effect on texture characteristics (hardness, chewiness, springiness and resilience) of chicken meatballs.

Allen et al. (1998) reported that aside from sensorial qualities, consumers first select product based on visual appearance. Product color is then a primary characteristic that consumers use for purchasing decisions. Color parameters can reflect the quality differences in meat products that change with cooking methods (Utrera et al. 2014; Zhuang et al. 2017). Previous studies have reported that CIE a* depends on the relative content of denatured myoglobin, undenatured myoglobin, myoglobin formation, and myoglobin accumulation on the meat surface (García-Segovia et al. 2007; Utrera et al. 2014). In addition, Zhuang et al. (2017) reported that the color of meat products was affected by varying fat and protein levels. In the current experiment, apparent redness increased as WB inclusion increased. This may be accredited to the increased hemorrhaging that has been commonly seen in WB fillets that might change the overall redness of a product (Kuttappan et al. 2016). Soglia et al. (2016) demonstrated that higher fat and collagen content levels were found in WB fillets compared to normal meat. Zhuang et al. (2017) proved that the color of WB was closely related to its soluble protein content and WB decreased the overall CIE a* and b* values when compared to normal fillets. However, in this study, a significant (P < 0.05) increase was noted in CIE a* values when the inclusion amount of WB exceeded 25%. The resulting change in CIE a* value may be due to differences in characteristics between ground and whole meats (Zhang et al. 2020).

Zhuang et al. (2017) indicated that WB can result in discoloration of cooked meat and a marked decrease in yellowness of meat products. Chatterjee et al. (2016) found that significant differences in CIE b* values were observed in severe WB fillets compared to normal fillets. In this study, CIE b* was significantly (P < 0.05) affected by WB inclusion rate which was in agreement with Chatterjee et al. (2016). In the present study, apparent CIE L* values increased as WB inclusion increased. In a study by Maynard (2020), the relative lightness of poultry products may be influenced by the relative collagen content in the meat. In the current study, lightness increased as WB inclusion increased which could be expected as collagen content has been consistently observed in severe WB fillets. Furthermore, previous reports suggest that the changes in CIE L* value in WB products could be explained by a significant water loss after cooking (Zhuang et al. 2017; Kuttappan et al. 2016; Dalle Zotte et al. 2017). Poor WHC of WB meat could be an influential reason for these changes in CIE L* value. Overall, WB inclusion at levels lower than 25% had slight effect on the color of meatballs. Therefore, color results indicate that the inclusion of WB meat at moderate levels into chicken meatball recipes could be a feasible option.

The microscopic structures were visually different among WB inclusion rates (Fig. 3) and the differences were distinctly related to sensory attributes. Sanchez Brambila et al. (2016,2018) demonstrated that WB gelling conditions significantly changed descriptive sensory profiles. Furthermore, that study indicated a positive relationship between sensorial and textural properties. In this study, the increase in WB inclusion level of meatballs has been known to lead to a significant decrease in sensorial properties, textural properties as well as the worsened structure of meatballs. Differences were more pronounced (the number of holes gradually increased with non-uniform structure) when the WB inclusion surpassed 25%. The organization values of chicken meatballs decreased as the size of holes increased with higher levels of WB inclusion. In addition, the hardness and chewiness of meatballs may be correlated to unbound structure and increasing number of holes. Zhang et al. (2020) reported similar findings in broiler breast meat gels that increased total deformations in the microstructure with larger cavities or pits as WB severity increased. In this study, sensory evaluations were stable as the microstructure had no differences when WB inclusion was less than 25%. Therefore, the addition of WB meat at relatively moderate levels into meatball formulations had no effect on sensory and microstructure characteristics.

Conclusion

This study verified that the quality of chicken meatballs can be influenced by the WB inclusion. The varying incorporation percentages of WB meat modified CL, color, texture characteristics (hardness, chewiness, springiness, resilience), water distribution, sensory evaluations, and microstructure of chicken meatballs. Overall, these meat quality parameters were negatively influenced as WB inclusion level increased in the product formulation. However, the quality of meatballs was acceptable when the WB inclusion was less than or equal to 25%. Although the extrapolated analysis of quality parameters suggested that the incorporation of WB meat up to 30% may be possible to prepare acceptable chicken meatballs, the optimal maximum inclusion rate of this affected meat in chicken meatball formulations was 25% taking into consideration the economic importance and final overall quality. The results from the present study provide a new direction for mitigating economic losses caused by WB incidence in the global poultry market.

Acknowledgments

This research was supported by Key Laboratory of Poultry Genetics and Breeding of Jiangsu Province (JQLAB-KF-201901), Major Science and Technology Project of Anhui (18030701165).

Footnotes

Publisher's Note

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