Abstract:In order to explore the effect of moisture content on the structure, physical and chemical properties of tissue protein prepared by extrusion and the quality characteristics of vegetarian ham, this paper used soybean protein as the main raw material to explore the changes of color, organization, texture properties, microstructure, secondary structure of organized soybean protein and the sensory quality and texture characteristics of vegetarian ham with different moisture content. The results showed that with the increase of water content, the degree of organization showed a trend of first increasing and then decreasing, and reached the highest (1.55) when the water content was 50% (w/w). Hardness and chewiness decreased significantly from 3423.12 g and 2135.44 g of 40% (w/w) moisture content to 886.37 g and 417.44 g of 50% (w/w) moisture content (p<0.05). Scanning electron microscopy showed that the tissue protein prepared at 50% water content (w/w) had more fiber structure, and the increase of water content promoted the transition from β-turn to -β fold. The sensory quality of vegetarian ham sausage prepared by tissue protein with 50% (w/w) moisture content was similar to that of meat sausage. In general, the organoleptic quality of ham sausage prepared with soybean tissue protein prepared at 50% moisture content (w/w) was similar to that of meat sausage. This study provides a theoretical basis for further understanding of the formation mechanism of tissue proteins and the development of related products.