Characterization of wheat bran nanocellulose and its application in low-fat emulsified sausage

Abstract

In order to reduce the fat content in emulsified sausage products, wheat bran was used as raw material to prepare cellulose by formic acid hydrolysis, and nanocrystallization was carried out by oxalic acid combined with high-pressure technology. Afterward, nanocellulose was used as a solid particle-stabilized Pickering emulsion to replace fat and produce low-fat emulsified sausage. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and thermal stability analysis showed that the prepared wheat bran nanocellulose was cellulose I with a crystallinity index of 73.36% and had good thermal stability (initial degradation temperature: 245.14 °C, maximum weight change temperature: 351.21 °C). When Pickering emulsion was used instead of fat in emulsified sausage, the theoretical heat and cooking loss of emulsified sausage decreased significantly with the fat substitute rate. However, the brightness, hardness, elasticity, cohesion, chewiness, and recoverability increased. This means that wheat bran nanocellulose stabilized Pickering emulsion is an ideal substitute for fat in emulsified sausage and can provide a theoretical basis for solving a series of health problems caused by eating large amounts of animal fat.