Producing dry-cured meats with relatively high aw and pH allows companies to cut costs to the detriment of microbial control. The purpose of this study was to evaluate for the first time the effect of High Processing Pressure (HPP) and storage temperature on the microbial counts, instrumental color, oxidation and sensory characteristics of sliced Iberian chorizo with high aw and pH. First, 600 MPa was applied for 480 s to sliced chorizo with aw: 0.88 and pH: 6.01, and the treated and untreated samples were stored at 4 or 20 °C for 90 or 180 days. HPP, storage time and storage at 20 °C were successful at decreasing the microbial counts that were initially high. HPP and the storage temperature had a limited detrimental effect, whereas the storage time had a marked adverse effect on oxidation and some sensory traits. Despite the high aw and pH, no safety issues arose initially or during the storage at 4 or 20 °C. In conclusion, for chorizo with high aw and pH favoring high microbial counts, HPP may be an effective hurdle without a noticeable detrimental effect, and the economically convenient storage at 20 °C might be beneficial despite causing moderate quality loss.

RESUMEN Análisis de ácidos grasos en grasa subcutánea procedentes de animales de alimentación fiable y seguraLas características de la grasa de cerdo Ibérico dependen del tipo de alimentación recibida en el último estadío de en gorde. El análisis que se ha utilizado hasta ahora para dife renciar las diferentes calidades de alimentación de los cerdos en este período ha sido el análisis de los perfiles de ácidos grasos de la grasa por técnicas de cromatografía de gases. Debido a las dudas sobre la efectividad de esta técnica en la montanera, el objetivo del proyecto global (RTA20080026) fue probar la validez de varios métodos analíticos para deter minar el tipo de alimentación del cerdo ibérico, centrándonos en este trabajo en el estudio de los perfiles de ácidos grasos. Para el desarrollo de este estudio se utilizaron tres campañas de montanera con un total de 749 muestras de 38 partidas, y con 144 paletas de las cuales 99 tenían una trazabilidad com pleta. Los resultados mostraron que la determinación de la alimentación de los cerdos ibéricos usando el análisis del per fil de ácidos grasos no es un método consistente para clasifi car los animales de acuerdo a la categoría de recebo, mien tras que para las categorías de bellota y cebo, los resultados encontrados mostraron unos buenos porcentajes de éxito. PALABRAS CLAVE: Cerdo Ibérico -Montanera -Paleta ibérica -Perfil de ácidos grasos. SUMMARY Fatty acid analysis of subcutaneous fat from animals with a reliable and safe feedingIberian pig fat characteristics depend on the type of feeding at the end of its finishfattening period. The routine analysis to differentiate among the qualities of the feeding types given to the pigs in the fattening stage has been the use of fatty acid profiles by gas chromatography. Due to de doubts about the effectiveness of this analysis in the montanera period, the aim of this global study was to test the validity of various analytical methods to determine the feeding type of Iberian pigs, focusing on the fatty acid profile. Three montanera periods with a total of 749 samples from 38 batches have been studied; using a total of 144 drycured shoulder shanks, 99 of which are of known pig origin. Results showed that the determination of the fatty acid profile using gas chromatography is not a consistent method to classify the animals according to diet in the recebo category, although it provided good percentages of success for classifying the bellota and cebo categories. KEY-WORDS: Dry-cured shoulder -Fatty acid profile -Iberian pig -Montanera.

The top-quality “salchichón” (a fermented dry-cured sausage) is manufactured from Iberian pigs reared outdoors. This work aims to evaluate the effect of hydrostatic high pressure (HHP) and storage temperature on sliced vacuum-packaged top-quality Iberian “salchichón”. Two types of “salchichón” (S1 and S2, manufactured at different companies) were processed at 600 MPa for 8 min and stored at 4 and 20 °C for 180 days. Microbiological, physicochemical, and sensory changes were evaluated. Microbiological counts were reduced by HHP treatment and also generally decreased during storage at both temperatures. Lightness and redness of slices decreased during storage at 20 °C, while yellowness values increased. Changes in color were also observed in sensory analysis of the dry-cured sausages. HHP increased lipid and protein oxidation values in S1, whereas protein oxidation increased at 20 °C in S2. S1 was more affected by HHP while S2 was more affected by the temperature of storage. Therefore, despite both products belonging to the same commercial category, slight differences in the composition of both products and/or differences in packaging determined a different behavior after HHP treatment and during storage at different temperatures.

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