Effect of gel composition interaction on rheological, physicochemical and textural properties of methyl cellulose oleogels and lard replacement in ham sausage.

Cellulose-derived edible vegetable oleogels can replace saturated/trans fats. The gelation mechanism relies on non-covalent interactions between gel components, influenced by their structure, concentration, and nature of the gelling factors. On the premise of preparing methyl cellulose (MC) with different viscosity, the effects of different gelling agents, MC, gelatin and oil concentration on the structure, physicochemical properties, oil binding capacity (OBC) and texture of emulsion and oleogels were studied. The oleogels were used as a lard substitute to study the effect on the texture, structure and sensory properties of the prepared ham sausage. We found that MC with gelatin had superior emulsification properties, inhibiting particle size and aggregation. Raising MC and gelatin concentrations to 1.5 wt% and 0.5 wt% led to oleogels with high OBC (>95 %), stability, and viscosity. The oleogels exhibited a dense structure and high mechanical strength with significantly enhanced structural hardness (199.55 g and 226.44 g). Higher oil concentration stabilized the emulsion but reduced oleogels stability after freeze-drying due to saturated oil absorption. The ratio of oleogels replacing lard was closely related to the texture of ham sausage. The texture properties of the ham sausage with 50 % lard replacement were closest to those of the control group.