# US 4,396,634 A · Shrimp analog > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 4,396,634 A - Document ID: US4396634A - Status: Granted - Kind: A - Application number: 06/404,670 - Filed: 1982-08-03 - Granted: 1983-08-02 - Earliest claimed: 1981-07-09 - Assignees: General Foods Corporation - Inventors: Soliman Y. K. Shenouda; Dreena A. Calabrese; Earl J. Benjamin - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US4396634A ## CPC - A23J 3/225: {Texturised simulated foods with high protein content (synthetic caviar see A23L17/35)} - A23J 3/22: by texturising - A23L 17/70: {Comminuted, e.g. emulsified, fish products; Processed products therefrom such as pastes, reformed or compressed products (A23L17/65, A23L17/10, A23L17/20, A23L17/40, A23L17/50 take precedence)} - Y10S 426/802: Simulated animal flesh - A23J: PROTEIN COMPOSITIONS FOR FOODSTUFFS; WORKING-UP PROTEINS FOR FOODSTUFFS; PHOSPHATIDE COMPOSITIONS FOR FOODSTUFFS - A23L: FOODS, FOODSTUFFS OR NON-ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; PREPARATION OR TREATMENT THEREOF (preservation thereof A23B) - Y10S: TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS ## Abstract A shrimp analog product with the taste, texture and appearance of real shrimp is prepared by: extracting from a fish the myofibrillar proteins; solubilizing the myofibrillar proteins with salt; adding to the solubilized protein a starch, flavor and an organic acid to form a paste; heat setting the paste to set the paste and denature the protein; shredding the heat set paste into filaments; mixing the filaments with a protein based binder followed by molding the mixture into shrimp-like pieces; and setting the filament-binder matrix to provide a cohesive shrimp analog product. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A process for preparing a shrimp analog product with the texture, flavor and appearance of real shrimp comprising: (a) obtaining from a fish the myofibrillar proteins; (b) solubilizing the myofibrillar proteins with a salt; (c) adding to the solubilized fish myofibrillar proteins from 0.05 to 25% of a starch, flavorant, and 0.005 to 2% of an organic acid to form a paste, all percents being by weight of the paste; (d) heat setting the paste for 0.25 to 10 minutes at 70.degree. to 120.degree. C. to denature the protein; (e) shredding the heat set paste into filaments; (f) mixing the filaments with a binder, followed by molding the mixture into shrimp-like pieces; and (g) setting the molded filament-binder mixture to provide a cohesive shrimp analog product. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) Process of claim 1 further comprising heat setting the paste in a first stage for 0.5 to 30 minutes at 30.degree. to 70.degree. C., prior to step (d). ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) Process of claim 2 further comprising cold tempering the paste for 0.25 to 20 hours at -5.degree. to 15.degree. C., prior to heat setting. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) Process of claim 3 wherein the paste further comprises a binder in an amount up to 10% by weight of the paste. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) Process of claim 4 wherein the binder is egg white in an amount within the range of 1 to 5% by weight of the paste. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) Process of claim 1 wherein the myofibrillar proteins are obtained by deboning and grinding the fish and washing the fish flesh with water to remove the water soluble components of the fish. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) Process of claim 6 wherein the by weight ratio of wash water to fish is within the range of 1:1 to 20:1. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) Process of claim 7 wherein the wash water contains 0.05 to 0.2% by weight of a salt. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) Process of claim 1 wherein the myofibrillar proteins are solubilized with an amount of salt effective to create an ionic strength of at least 0.3. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) Process of claim 9 wherein the salt contains a polyvalent salt and the amount of salt is effective to create an ionic strength of 0.4 to 1.0. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) Process of claim 10 wherein the amount of salt is within the range of 0.5 to 5% by weight of the fish protein. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) Process of claim 10 wherein the salt is sodium chloride and tripolyphosphate. ### Claim 13 (depends on 4) Process of claim 4 wherein the flavorant is a sugar added at a level of 0.5 to 15% by weight of the paste. ### Claim 14 (depends on 5) Process of claim 5 wherein the level of starch is 3 to 10%, and the level of sugar as a flavorant is 3 to 10%, and the level of acid is 0.05 to 0.5%, all percents being by weight of the paste. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) Process of claim 14 wherein the acid is ascorbic acid and acetic acid. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) Process of claim 1 further comprising treating the extracted fish proteins with an oxidizing agent to obtain a desired color. ### Claim 17 (depends on 3) Process of claim 3 wherein the paste is cold tempered at 0.degree. to 10.degree. C. for 1 to 10 hours. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) Process of claim 17 wherein the paste is heat set in the first stage for 3 to 20 minutes at 40.degree. to 60.degree. C. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) Process of claim 18 wherein the paste is heat set in step (d) for 0.5 to 10 minutes at 90.degree. to 100.degree. C., ### Claim 20 (depends on 1, 4, 14) Process of claim 1, 4 or 14 wherein binder added to step (f) is the paste of step (c) and is mixed with the filaments at a level of 5 to 75% by weight of the shrimp analog product. ### Claim 21 (depends on 20) Process of claim 20 further comprising adding up to 50% by weight of ground shrimp to the paste-filament mixture. ### Claim 22 (depends on 21) Process of claim 21 wherein 5 to 20% of ground shrimp is added to the paste-filament mixture. ### Claim 23 (depends on 20) Process of claim 20 wherein the filaments have a diameter within the range of 0.5 mm to 5 mm. ### Claim 24 (depends on 20) Process of claim 20 wherein the paste-filament mixture is heat set in step (g) by subjecting the molded mixture to internal temperatures of at least 65.degree. C. ### Claim 25 (depends on 20) Process of claim 20 further comprising freezing the shrimp analog product. ### Claim 26 (depends on 20) Process of claim 20 wherein the level of paste is 40 to 70% by weight of the shrimp analog product. ### Claim 27 (depends on 20) Process of claim 20 wherein the level of paste is 10 to 30% by weight of the shrimp analog product. ### Claim 28 (depends on 1, 3, 12, 14) Product prepared by the process of claim 1, 3, 12, 14, or 19. ### Claim 29 (depends on 21) Product prepared by the process of claim 21.