Abstract:To investigate the effects of amino acid types and their addition amounts on the quality characteristics of emulsified chicken minced products, and to obtain the amino acid types and addition amounts that best improve the quality of emulsified chicken minced products. In this paper, emulsified minced chicken meat with varying ratios of L-lysine (Lys), L-arginine (Arg), L-histidine (His) and L-cysteine (Cys) was used to determine and analyze eating quality, emulsification characteristics, textural characteristics, rheology, flavor substances, sensory quality, and microstructure. The results showed that the addition of Lys, Arg, and His significantly decreased the TEF, EFTA, and CL values of emulsified ground meat, but significantly increased the pH, hardness, viscosity, and chewiness of the emulsified product more effectively than the addition of Cys. Rheological analysis revealed that Lys, Arg, and His increased the final storage modulus. Additionally, scanning electron microscopy showed that Lys, Arg, and His contributed to the formation of a tight gel mesh structure. Overall, 0.50% Lys, 0.60% Arg, and 0.90% His were the optimal addition quantities. These findings suggest that Lys, Arg, and His have potential in the preparation of emulsified meat products.