salt added to fat acts as a binding agent?
I made maseca dumplings. Maseca is the flour obtained by soaking corn in lime. Maseca needs to be mixed with water to make a dough. The dumplings are added to gently boiling water. When I used only water and maseca to make the dumplings they held together. If I used water and fat (oil or lard) then the dumplings fell apart. If I used water, fat and salt they held together. The quantity of salt matters, too little and they fall apart quickly. Furthermore:
- Salt added to the water retarded the decay of a dumpling w/o salt.
- Adding a dumpling w/o salt to salted water lengthened survival time. Apparently it is the agitation of the bubbles in boiling water that causes them to fall apart, as they stay together at a simmer up to 195-200 but as the bubbling starts to increase they start to fall apart; at a full boil they fall apart quicker. Those without lard could withstand a rolling boil. Can anyone explain this phenomenon? I'm asking why salt acts as a binder but I don't if that is actually what is occurring. Thanks
Pictures about "salt added to fat acts as a binding agent?"
Is salt a binding agent?
Binding AgentAs a binder, salt helps extract the myofibrillar proteins in processed and formed meats binding the meat together and reducing cooking losses.How does salt act as a preservative?
Salt is effective as a preservative because it reduces the water activity of foods. The water activity of a food is the amount of unbound water available for microbial growth and chemical reactions.Why is salt added to the meat?
Salt is added to foods to assist in reducing and preventing microbial growth, aid in extracting salt\u2011soluble meat proteins for emulsion stability, increase the ability of the meat to bind during cooking, increase the water- holding capacity of meat products and enhance basic meat taste and flavor.What is the purpose of salting?
Salt acts as a preservative by altering the availability of water in foods, thereby depriving microbes from using available water as a nutrient. The growth of pathogens and spoilage organisms is impeded when salt is present.Michael Moss on America’s addiction to salt, sugar, and fat
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Anna Tarazevich, Valeria Boltneva, Dmitriy Ganin, Dmitriy Ganin