February 15-18, 2009 Washington State Convention Center Seattle ...

DEVELOPMENT OF A VALUE-ADDED PRODUCT USING CHANNEL CATFISH BELLY
FLAP MEAT
Bartholomew Green*, Byungrok Min, Lee Wiles and Jin Kim
USDA-ARS Harry K. Dupree Stuttgart National Aquaculture Research Center
PO Box 1050
Stuttgart, AR 72160 USA
bart.green@ars.usda.gov
The shank fillet of channel catfish is a primary product form produced during processing and is formed by trimming the belly
flap or nugget section from a boneless fillet. Belly flap meat comprises around 20% of the fillet weight. Belly flap meat has a
fat content of about 15% compared to about 9% for the shank fillet. The fat content of the belly flap meat, which limits its shelf
life and confers undesirable sensory qualities, along with the black-pigmented peritoneal membrane present on the surface of
the belly flap contribute to its classification as a low-value by-product of catfish processing. Wholesale price paid for catfish
belly flap meat, also known as catfish nuggets, averages about 37% of the shank fillet price.
A series of studies was undertaken to evaluate the potential for developing a value-added product using minced channel catfish
belly flap meat. Washing of catfish mince resulted in whiter tissues or products due to the removal of blood, pigments, and
water-soluble proteins; however, the presence of specs of comminuted peritoneal membrane resulted in grayish or dark areas
on certain points of the product. Washing increased the moisture content from 71.5% to 77.9% while reducing mechanical
hardness (19.1 N to 11.9 N), chewiness index (14.2 N to 8.83 N) and shear force (0.82 J to 0.51 J), and fat content (9.82% to
4.39%). The particle size of minced belly flap meat affected significantly textural characteristics of catfish patties cooked by
dry or moist heat. As size of meat particles for patties decreased, hardness and gumminess, and color difference from fillet
increased, but Kramer shear break force as well as percent cooking loss decreased (P