The technological effect of wheat dietary fibre was studied in surimi gel products obtained from giant squid (Dosidicus gigas). Three and six percent wheat dietary fibre with different particle sizes was added at the same time as water to maintain similar moisture levels in all samples. Under scanning electronic microscopy (SEM), gel samples with added dietary fibre presented a regular distribution of dietary fibre: however, the dietary fibres were larger than the cells of the gel matrix, making the protein network less homogeneous. This, combined with a smaller proportion of protein, reduced the gel strength, hardness, cohesiveness and water binding capacity (WBC) of gels. Addition of wheat dietary fibre to giant squid surimi also made gels yellower and reduced their lightness. The sensory panel detected no differences in the appearance of samples, but they did detect differences in textural properties. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.