Is it possible to eat raw crab sticks. Composition of crab sticks

In our country, this product appeared in the "dashing" 90s and immediately received a positive assessment of Russian families for its unusual exoticism, pleasant taste, and relatively low cost. Best of all, they don't need to be cooked or even reheated. I opened the package and ate as much as I needed. Therefore, chopsticks were often snacked at lunchtime.

Very soon, our sharp-witted housewives learned to cook on their basis very tasty, and sometimes even gourmet dishes, which were proudly placed on the festive table. Then few people thought that in the composition of crab sticks there is not even a hint of the meat of these crustaceans. Few people understood what they were made of at all. Delicious, satisfying - well, okay.

Now the time has changed. People began to monitor their health, try to eat healthy, varied. Therefore, many are interested in the question: what do crab sticks consist of, calories, benefits and harms of this product, what are they? Let's talk about this today:

Calorie crab sticks

The product has a low calorie content: about 100 kcal per 100 g of the product. Nutritional value per 100 g of product: proteins - approximately 6 g, carbohydrates - approximately 10 g.

What will crab sticks contain? Composition of the product

The composition of the product also includes water, vitamin PP, some useful minerals: chlorine, zinc, chromium, as well as fluorine, molybdenum, nickel.

In production, as we already know, natural crab meat is not used. Most often, crab sticks are made from surimi minced fish, with the addition of soy protein, starch, and vegetable oil. Vegetable protein, salt, sugar are also added there.

In addition, the composition, as a rule, is supplemented with various food additives that have three-digit indices adopted for their designation. Under the indices hide thickeners, flavors, dyes, as well as flavor enhancers.

At the same time, different manufacturers can change the composition of the product in favor of natural or artificial components. Therefore, in order to buy something more digestible, natural, carefully study the composition on the package.

What are crab sticks valued for? Product benefits

What can we say, the benefits of crab sticks are not great. Since a product that is not completely natural cannot be useful. In addition, during heat treatment, for example, when cooking sticks in batter, or frying “crab” cutlets, even the small amount of nutrients that are there (minerals, vitamins and healthy fats) completely disappear, leaving behind only fish protein .

But still, if you use them infrequently, buy only a quality product, there will be no harm. On the contrary, sticks can be useful if you need to quickly satisfy your hunger. They are useful for people who want to lose weight. After all, a few crab eaten will relieve hunger and will not add extra calories.

To whom are crab sticks dangerous? Product harm

The harm again lies in the fact that the composition of the sticks contains little natural product - only surimi minced fish, dyes, thickeners, flavors. This is of little use to anyone. But the body will receive tangible harm only when you eat 2-3 packs of the product daily. But you, as prudent people, are unlikely to start eating exclusively crab sticks.

Although, of course, they should not be included in the daily menu, it is not at all necessary to reject them completely. Sometimes you can treat yourself to a delicious low-calorie salad or snack. Here is one such recipe:

Snack "Raffaello sweets"

For cooking need: 1 pack (200 g) quality, juicy sticks (frozen), 6 boiled eggs, 3 hard-boiled potatoes, 100 g grated hard cheese. Mayonnaise, fresh herbs - to taste

Let's start cooking:

Frozen sticks rub on a fine grater. Do the same with peeled potatoes and eggs. Put everything in a salad bowl. Add a little finely chopped greens, pour over with mayonnaise. Stir. You should get a thick mass, so use thick mayonnaise.

Now sculpt small balls from the resulting mixture. Each roll in grated cheese, put in a beautiful slide in a deep salad bowl. Put on the shelf of the refrigerator to cool, harden. And then you can serve it to the table.

You can also stuff sticks with salted salmon, minced herring or squid mixed with finely chopped cucumbers and mayonnaise. And there are so many other things you can do with them. Just put a little filling so that the roll looks neat. And one more thing: do not get carried away with seasonings and salt, otherwise you can spoil the taste of the dish. Eat right and be healthy!

In the food industry, a phenomenon sometimes occurs when a manufactured product has a name that does not refer to the composition of the product. One such product is crab sticks.

This name of the product led to the fact that for a long time people believed that crab sticks were really made from crab meat. However, the low price of the product led some people into bewilderment.

Wants to tell you what crab sticks are actually made of and whether this product is good for health.

Composition of crab sticks.

The benefits and harms of crab sticks, like any product, are determined by what it is made of and what processing the ingredients have undergone. The more a product has been processed, the less natural it becomes.

All this is true for such a product as crab sticks. As many have already guessed by now, there is not a single gram of crab meat in the composition of the sticks.

In the last century, the Japanese tried to produce crab meat, but practice has shown that such a project is unprofitable. Crab meat was incredibly expensive. Then the basis was taken minced white fish - surimi, which Japanese women successfully used to prepare various dishes.

Surimi has become the main ingredient in crab sticks. To obtain it, the fish fillet was separated from the skin and bones, thoroughly washed, and then squeezed. It turns out a mass from which you can form various figures.

To obtain crab sticks, egg whites, starch, water, dyes, sweeteners, flavor enhancers and stabilizers are added to surimi, which help to get the taste of crab meat. The result is a product whose composition says little about its benefits.

During the processing of fish fillets, many useful substances are washed out of it. Only vitamin PP and some macro- and microelements remain. Yes, and these beneficial substances are reduced in quantity during the heat treatment of the product in order to rid it of pathogenic bacteria.

Useful is also almost completely washed out of minced meat. It remains only 2% of the volume of the sticks. Most of the sticks are water - 70%.

The protein part is 17.5% of the product volume. All proteins contained in crab sticks are important for the body and easily digestible. This is perhaps the only benefit of crab sticks for the body.

Crab sticks use food additives approved for use in the food industry. However, they are considered harmless to the body only when used in small doses.

Therefore, crab sticks can be consumed only occasionally and in small quantities. With the abuse of this product, allergic reactions and deterioration in the absorption of calcium by the body are possible.

How to buy crab sticks?

Crab sticks are delicious and relatively cheap. Many housewives use it to prepare holiday salads and snacks.

However, in order not to harm the health of yourself and your loved ones, you must adhere to the following recommendations when choosing crab sticks:

buy only a packaged product, as it indicates the production date and shelf life;
study the composition of the product. Quality crab sticks should be made from minced surimi. It should be in the first place in the list of products. If surimi is in second place, then there may be no minced fish in the product at all. In this case, fish fingers can be made from soy mince;
crab sticks should be tightly packed in a multilayer film;
the appearance of crab sticks should be juicy and appetizing;
crab sticks should not be re-frozen and dry.

Although crab sticks cannot be called a healthy product, their rare use will not harm the body. However, this is true only if you purchase a quality and fresh product.

The benefits, harms and composition of crab sticks:

Crab sticks began to be in demand as soon as they appeared on store shelves. This product attracted buyers because it has an unusual pleasant taste, as well as an affordable price. In addition, the sticks do not need to be cooked, so they were often purchased for a snack at lunchtime. In addition, on the basis of this product, the hostesses came up with many interesting dishes that were proudly served at the festive table.

When this product first appeared on sale, few people thought about what is included in the composition of crab sticks, what benefits and harms they can have. The main thing is that it is tasty and satisfying. Nowadays, more and more people are trying to monitor nutrition, so the question of the composition of the product has become of interest to many.

The composition of crab sticks, their benefits and harms

It is important to mention that this product is associated with crabs only by the name, which has become only a marketing ploy of enterprising manufacturers. So, the basis of crab sticks is minced meat from various white fish. They mainly use herring, pollock, hake and others. The fish fillet is washed for a long time with cold running water, then thoroughly crushed and mixed until a homogeneous elastic mass. The product has a fishy smell and is exceptionally white in color.

In addition to minced meat, the composition includes salt, sugar, starch, vegetable oil and egg or soy protein. In addition to these ingredients, there are also those that play a supporting role. These are dyes, thickeners, flavors and flavor enhancers.

With such a composition, we can say that the benefits of crab sticks are not great, since the product is not completely natural. However, if you buy a quality product and do not use it often, then there will be no harm from them.

Crab sticks - the benefits and harms for weight loss

For people who are trying to lose weight, the nutritional value of crab sticks is of great interest and whether they can be consumed on a diet. It should be noted that this product is low-calorie - about 90 kcal per 100 g of the product. Since the semi-finished product is not subjected to heat treatment, it contains a sufficient amount of minerals. All this can be attributed to the positive qualities of the product.

However, due to the content of chemical components, the frequent use of crab sticks can lead to allergic reactions and disorders in the digestive tract.

Of course, natural crab meat is the most useful. This fact is obvious. And crab sticks are just an imitation of crab meat. But they are no less useful, because they are made from minced fish. The main thing is that there are no artificial additives in them.

Composition and calories

In any supermarket you will find a large selection of sticks - in various packages and by the piece, with and without minced fish. A quality product can only contain minced ocean fish, natural vegetable oil, egg white, a little starch and sugar, and table salt.

In other cases, various flavor enhancers are used that are identical to natural, as well as dyes, aromatic compositions and thickeners. To understand what you are buying, read the labels carefully and choose only ingredients of natural origin.

The total calorie content of the product is not high. A standard 100 gram package contains no more than 90 kcal. The amount of proteins depends on the amount of minced fish added to the product, there are not many fats, and there are practically no carbohydrates. For convenience, you can calculate the calorie content of one stick. If there are 10 pieces in a package, then with a calorie content of 90 kcal, the value of one piece will be 9 kcal.

Benefit and harm

Of course, crab sticks cannot compete with fresh fish in terms of the amount of nutrients - this is a fact. But they are no less useful than the fish itself.

Firstly, minced fish (surimi) is not subjected to heat treatment during production, so some trace elements and useful vitamins are preserved, but mostly useful easily digestible protein remains.

Secondly, they have a neutral smell and taste, so they are added to a variety of dishes. In addition, they are low in calories and at the same time they perfectly reduce the feeling of hunger. That's why there are so few obese people in the "homeland" of crab sticks in Japan.

The most harmful element of crab sticks is artificial additives that mimic natural ones. These are various preservatives, flavor enhancers, aromatic additives E621 and the complete absence of minced fish. With this composition, sticks are unlikely to be useful, their nutritional value is almost zero. And when making crab salad, you will not be preparing a protein dish, but a starchy one, which is akin to pasta or potatoes.

In addition, the "chemical composition" disrupts the natural metabolism, which will inevitably lead to extra pounds. Carmine, which is used for color, can cause allergies. Fish protein seems to be a natural ingredient, but it is harmful to people with protein intolerance, is the strongest irritant of the intestinal mucosa, and leads to an exacerbation of chronic problems of the gastrointestinal tract.

The use of crab sticks for weight loss

In our time, a four-day diet on crab sticks, which contain complete protein, has become widespread. Fat from such a diet literally melts. How it works? When you consume proteins, the body starts producing a hormone that promotes the breakdown of fat stores.

Scrupulously counting calories these days is not necessary. The main thing is to remove sugar and fat from the diet, eat only a quality product without artificial additives, love low-fat kefir, unsweetened tea and plain water.

With this diet, given that there are few calories in the main product, the total daily calorie content will decrease significantly. One kilogram per day such a weight loss is promised by the creators of the diet, but subject to all the rules.

When choosing which crab sticks to eat for you and your loved ones, put safety first. There is one important rule: be sure to read the ingredients on the package, if surimi (minced fish) is first on the list, then there is fish in the product. Here, the main criterion for choosing is not the price of the product, but the composition.

The only negative is that the manufacturer does not indicate how much minced fish is added to the product. But there is a way to determine its amount - look at the packaging, how much protein is per 100 grams. If the amount of protein is high, then the percentage of fish content is also good.

What else to pay attention to:

Sticks should be elastic and juicy;
They may be dry if they have been thawed and then refrozen. Therefore, do not buy the product if there is snow and ice inside the package;
Painted red, there should be only one side - the outer;
If minced fish is listed second, etc., fish in sticks is the bare minimum;
There is no minced meat at all, which means that the product is only from starch or soy;
Sometimes the product is sold by the piece without packaging, it is better not to buy such copies. You will not be able to find out reliable information about the composition of such a “delicacy”;
A good quality guarantee is the information on the manufacturer, expiration date and date of manufacture indicated on the package.

Let's summarize. The imitation of crab meat was invented by the Japanese. They ground fish fillets into minced meat, washed it with water, and ended up with “surimi”, which is the main ingredient of the product.

If you care about your health, then carefully study the composition, minced fish should be listed first in the list of ingredients, then there may be natural vegetable oil, table salt, egg white, a little sugar and starch.

Crab sticks appeared on the shelves of our stores at the end of the last century. The product immediately fell in love with everyone. I was especially pleased with the price. The clear name did not cause any difficulties for buyers. And for a long time it was believed that this product was made from crab meat. This article is about the benefits and harms of crab sticks.

After some time, the question began to arise: how can crab meat be so cheap? Only then did they begin to read the composition of the product indicated on the package. Which just caused confusion.

Composition of crab sticks

There is nothing complicated in the composition of this marine product:

minced fish, which is called surimi;
starch;
vegetable oil;
egg or soy protein;
sugar;
salt;
chemical additives (flavor, thickener, flavor enhancer);
dyes.

There is no crab meat in it. Fish meat should take from 30 to 60 percent of the total mass. It is considered a quality product. If this proportion is not respected, there are shortcomings in appearance and taste.

Cooking technology

The flesh of the fish is separated from the bones, the entrails, skin and heads are removed. Thoroughly washed and sent for grinding. The meat of hake, pollock, haddock, horse mackerel and other types of fish with white meat is used. Only fillet is taken.

Some sources claim that surimi is prepared with the addition of fish entrails, bones and heads. This fact cannot be categorically disputed. Perhaps they do this with illegal production. But crab sticks then turn out not quite attractive and tasty.

Then excess moisture is removed from the minced meat. Salt, sugar, starch, vegetable oil, protein and stabilizers are added.

Flavorings make this mixture taste like crab meat.

Coloring should be done with natural dyes. For these purposes, carmine or paprika is used. But manufacturers, in order to save money, can also use chemical ones.

As a result of processing, the product is not exposed to high temperatures. This is both a plus and a minus. Since, on the one hand, useful elements are preserved. On the other hand, there is the possibility of the appearance of harmful microorganisms.

Finished product calories

This product is considered low calorie. One hundred grams of crab sticks have about a hundred calories. The nutritional value of the same mass: proteins - 6 grams, carbohydrates - 10 grams, fats - 1 gram. Most of the product is purified water.

Often you can find the so-called crab diet. That is, for a certain time you need to eat this product and limit others. Such a diet can end up with gastritis for you or, at best, an upset of the gastrointestinal tract. The body will not receive useful vital components, but it will replenish with chemistry.

The benefits of crab sticks

Healthy food is not about crab sticks! Although the product contains some minerals and vitamins, their amount is so small that some believe that they are not there.

chlorine;
chromium;
zinc;
molybdenum;
fluorine;
nickel;
iron;
iodine;
vitamin RR.

The manufacturing process of surimi is arranged in such a way that all useful substances die before the product gets into the package. There remains only fish protein in a tangible amount. But if, in the process of preparing a dish, crab sticks are fried or boiled, then it will disappear. So, the benefits of crab sticks are reduced to zero.

Harm of crab sticks

Much more can be said about harm. This is because the product contains chemical food additives.

In the manufacture of crab sticks, additives E171, E160, E450 and E420 are used, which are known for their detrimental effect on the human body.

In addition, various dyes of chemical origin do not add any benefit to the product. You can talk endlessly about the harm of these components.

There is a flaw in the technology of minced meat preparation. It does not undergo heat treatment, therefore, if stored improperly, it can cause various diseases.

Excessive consumption of crab sticks leads to gastrointestinal upset and allergic reactions.

The opinion is erroneous that since the composition of the crab stick includes fish meat, it contains all the minerals and vitamins that the seafood contains. And eating chopsticks is not only harmful, but very useful.

Is it worth eating crab sticks

You will not benefit from this product. And if you do not abuse it, there is no harm either. You will feel the negative impact if you eat two or three sticks every day. Or regular packing.

Interestingly, the effect of crab sticks on the human body has not been fully studied. So far, only a few obvious reactions to its use are known. And how things really are - a big question.

The composition includes chemical elements harmful to the body. Their use is not prohibited in acceptable norms. But this does not render them harmless. Each person deals with this moment in their own way. Some believe that since there is nothing forbidden in them, then everything is in order. Others pay attention even to a small proportion of chemical additives in the composition, and refuse to use them.

Before use, evaluate the appearance of the product. If the crab stick crumbles, dry, red color extends to the white part of the product - do not eat it. The manufacturer added too much starch, soy and dyes, but he regretted the fish.

So, the choice is still yours. If you really liked them, then you can treat yourself once a month. There will be no harm from such a dosage.

How to choose quality crab sticks

Take note to buy crab sticks only in the package. In this form, you can evaluate their condition and composition.

Do not buy by weight or in a store with unsanitary conditions. With our manufacturers, their honesty must be doubted. It is not clear what they are made of, how they were stored and whether the expiration date has expired.

Look at the appearance of the sticks in the package. If there is frost or ice on them, this indicates improper storage. Do not freeze this product twice. There is a possibility of occurrence of harmful microorganisms. They should be smooth, juicy, appetizing.

Also, pay attention to the color. Excessively bright colors will indicate a large number of dyes.

Pay attention to the composition. A quality product should contain more than 30% surimi. In the list of components, in this case, minced fish is indicated in the first place. If there is something else, then it is better to refuse them.

Is it possible to give crab sticks to children?

Very often you can see a picture when mom gives a child a crab stick. Interestingly, for most children, such a treat is much better than candy. But it is absolutely impossible to do this.

The child's body is not yet ready for food "stuffed with chemistry." The child may have an allergic reaction in the form of rashes and redness. Also indigestion. In the worst case, it threatens with poisoning. Hospital, droppers, flushing and other unpleasant procedures.

So before you treat the child, remember this.

The use of crab sticks in cooking

This product is used to make salads, but other dishes are also found. And also used in the form in which it is.

He liked the culinary specialists so much that there are just a huge number of recipes using it.

When using and storing, you need to know a few rules. You need to defrost at room temperature. If you put the crab stick in the microwave, it will lose its juiciness.

It must be stored in the refrigerator at a temperature of 5-6 degrees. Or in a cold place.

There is definitely no benefit in crab sticks! But, if you choose a quality product, then by eating it, you will not be afraid for your health.