CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

Long chain polyunsaturated n-3 fatty acids (PUFA) are critical nutrients for human health and the fortification of foods with these fatty acids is an important emerging area from the commercial and academic point of view. Development, characterization and changes during refrigerated vacuum storage of low-fat chicken sausages formulated with pre-emulsified squid oil were examined and compared to those formulated with beef tallow. Physico chemical analysis and process yield after heat treatment were determined; the heat treated sausages were evaluated by purge loss, color, texture, microstructure by SEM, microbial counts, fatty acid profile, lipid oxidation and sensory analysis during refrigerated vacuum storage. Process yield of both formulations were higher than 97% and purge losses during storage lower than 7%. Purge losses of oil formulated sausages were lower than those with beef tallow. Sausages with squid oil resulted in higher lightness, lower redness and yellowness, and lower Texture Profile Analysis parameters than the formulation prepared with beef tallow. Microstructure of both formulations were similar, except for the fat droplets that microscopic observations showed in the sausages made with beef tallow. Low lipid oxidation was detected in formulation with squid oil due to the the combination of ingredients and storage conditions. Microbial counts of both products were less than 5 log CFU/g at the end of 90 days of storage. The sausage formulated with squid oil presented more than 30 and 40 g/100 g of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids, respectively. Docosahexaenoic acid was the predominant polyunsaturated fatty acid, followed by eicosapentaenoic acid and linoleic acid. Both products showed safe sanitary conditions, good sensory acceptability and presented very good stability and quality attributes but sausages formulated with squid oil showed a better fatty acid profile according to nutritional criteria.