Elucidating the rheological and thermal properties of mixed fish and pork skin gelatin gels: Effects of cooling conditions and incubation times

Gelatin is an important hydrocolloid in food and biotechnological applications. There are two basic sources of gelatins; mammalian and fish-derived gelatins, but fish gelatins are less appreciated due to their weak gel properties. Hence, to reinforce the gel properties of fish gelatin, mixtures of gelatins are used. In this study, the mixtures of cold-water ocean fish scale (OFS) and pork skin (PS) gelatin were studied via rheological measurements, micro differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and particle tracking at different cooling conditions and incubation times to understand the gelation mechanism and the network structure of the gels. The rheological and micro-DSC measurements provide a detailed understanding of the gelation mechanism of gelatin gels under different cooling conditions while particle tracking revealed the local physical properties of the gels. A single or two-step melting was demonstrated in the mixed gelatin gels depending on the cooling conditions suggesting that the aggregation of PS in the mixtures influences the physical and thermal properties of the gels. Under rapid cooling, co-aggregation of OFS and PS chains is considered to cause a single-step melting of the mixed gels. Under gradual cooling, conversely, the PS may form aggregates independently before the OFS. This is evidenced by a two-step decrease in moduli and two clear endothermic peaks in the micro-DSC measurement. Particle tracking further reveals information on the local physical properties of pure and mixed gelatin gels on reheating, indicating that the local structures of mixed gels resemble those of pure PS gels. This suggests that mixed OFS and PS gels may form a cooperative aggregation, thereby improving the physical and thermal properties of the mixed gelatin gels.