Effects of Cooking and Rinsing on the Protein Losses From Blue Crabs1,2

Abstract

The effects of cooking blue crabs at two temperatures (100 C and 121 C) on the amount of cook loss and concurrent protein loss were studied under controlled pilot plant conditions. The 121 C cook temperature resulted in a greater volume of cook loss fluids which contained a greater amount of protein. Centrifugation of the cook loss and analysis of the supernatant fractions showed that the protein in the supernatant from the 121 C cook was significantly greater than in the supernatant from the 100 C cook. Percent protein in the solids component of the cook loss showed an inverse relationship being slightly, but not significantly, higher in the solids from 100 C cook than in the 121 C cook. Under pilot test conditions, rinsing samples of fresh picked crab meat with tap water resulted in protein losses of 15.2% for the 100 C cook and 12.6% for the 121 C cook. Dipping crab meat samples in a salt brine solution resulted in protein losses of 11.2% for the 100 C cook and 7.3% for the 121 C cook. Higher protein losses during the early winter season were attributed to seasonal variation in the physiological condition of the blue crab.

Increasing the Yield of Irish Brown Crab (Cancer pagurus) during Processing without Adversely Affecting Shelf-Life

“…Post euthanization, crabs are typically soaked in water at ambient temperature for 2 h, and boiled at 100 °C for 20 min, at which stage the meat may be extracted or the crab may remain intact, depending on the final product. A cook loss of typically 10% after boiling is common [ 4 ]. Products are then vacuum packed followed by pasteurization (typically 70 °C for 2 min (picked meat) or 90 °C for 10 min (whole crab)).…”