The food industry continually strives to offer foods that enrich our diet in every way. Supermarket shelves have attractive new products, some from other latitudes. For example, soy, quinoa or surimi They complement our fantastic Mediterranean diet with their healthy properties. Being able to discover these and other foods and incorporate them into our routine makes our menu more diverse and balanced in terms of nutrients. In the heat of the stove some questions are born that have all legitimacy: What is surimi and what is it made of?
what is surimi
In general, we are more and more open to try new flavors. On the other hand, few consumers still do not take into account the benefits of the food they eat. For these reasons, when a new product is born and becomes more and more visible, questions frequently arise regarding its nutritional properties. Despite having been with us for a few decades, the question what is surimi still open. For many people it is already a common product, visible in dishes as ours as the seafood salad or the appetizing skewers of Basque cuisine. For others, it is a product that continues to stand out for its novelty in contrast to the typical ingredients of traditional Spanish cuisine.
As with Manchego cheese or Iberian ham in our gastronomic culture, surimi is a traditional product on the other side of our world. Its ancestral origin is anchored in time, when it emerged as a way to preserve fish. As the sound qualities of its name indicate, its origin is in Japan, about a thousand years ago and the meaning of its term is “minced fish fillet”. For this reason, wondering in the country of the rising sun what surimi is is a no-brainer, just as it is for us to do it on the stuffed loin or vegetable stews with sausages. The fact is that surimi is present in everyday basic Japanese dishes such as udon or sushi.
Properties of surimi
To completely clear up the mystery about what surimi is, important aspects remain to be addressed. Since surimi was created in the XNUMXth century, it is clear that food, its methods and technology have evolved a lot. Especially in the last century, artisan production has given way to more sophisticated elaborations and with all hygienic guarantees. However, the surimi elaboration technique remains the same almost 10 centuries later. To obtain quality surimi, it is necessary to use very fresh fish and from him, select the best: his steaks. One of the best species for this is the Alaska pollock, whose loins are minced once cleaned to obtain its protein. Knowing these aspects is of great interest when answering what surimi is. By taking advantage of fresh fish loins, surimi is a great alternative to this food that, like him, has its benefits.
Nothing or almost nothing has changed, then, in this food. We say “almost” because the conditions in which it is made have done so. In this sense, a surimi like the one in
Krissia® is made at low temperatures at all times to achieve the highest quality and freshness of the protein. However, it is always helpful to read the nutritional information before buying any product. In this way, Krissia® surimi bars do not contain preservatives or artificial colors so they opt for pasteurization as a guarantee of food safety. This method is present in foods as basic as milk and yoghurt and allows us to always have surimi on hand in our refrigerator.
Surimi and protein
Being made with the best parts of the fish, surimi has a great availability of proteins that include all essential amino acids and stand out for their easy assimilation and digestion.
The recommended amount of fish according to nutrition experts is between 3 and 4 servings per week. Without being a direct substitute for it but a healthy alternative to it, consuming surimi helps increase the amount of daily protein And it has other equally important benefits. The surimi bars also contain omega 3, some essential polyunsaturated fatty acids for good cardiovascular health and Vitamin B12, only present in foods of animal origin, and that helps reduce tiredness and fatigue. Other elements present in the surimi bars are minerals such as selenium, important for the proper functioning of our immune system.
Therefore, if you like to eat well and are concerned about your diet, surimi is a great ally to complete and enrich your dishes.