The objective of this investigation is to evaluate the possibility of strawberry pigments used in the manufacture of pork sausage. Five treatments of pork sausages (5% fat) with two levels of sodium nitrite (0 and 0.015%), three levels (0.1%, 0.2% and 0.3%) of strawberry pigments were produced. The addition of strawberry pigments resulted in the significant increase of a* values and b* values, but the significant reduction of L* values, VBN values and TBA values (p < 0.05). The 0.1% or 0.2% strawberry pigments added samples had better color and sensory qualities (color, flavor, mouthfeel and slice traits) than the controls, equal even better color and sensory qualities than the NaNO 2 . Based mainly on the results of overall acceptability during 29 days storage, it could be concluded that strawberry pigments showed a potential for pork sausage manufacture.Keywords: strawberry pigments, nitrites alternative, pork sausage, quality characteristics *To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: zhoucl4@hfut.edu.cn
IntroductionThe color is one of the important quality characteristics of meat and meat product. Based on it, consumers make a decision of acceptance or rejection (Mancini and Hunt 2005). Nitrite is currently used in the manufacture of cured meat product (Krause et al., 2011) because it plays a multifunctional role: it can produce the characteristic pink color of cured meats (McClure et al., 2011); contribute the characteristic flavor of cured meats (Tsoukalas et al., 2011), and inhibit the growth of microorganism, especially, the growth of Clostridium botulinum, which produces the potential fatal toxin, botulin (Cui et al., 2010). However, nitrite faces a huge challenge used in manufacture meat product because it is reported to form carcinogenic substances such as N-nitrosopyrrolidine and N-nitrosodimethylamine (Honikel 2008). In view of safety and health, natural colorants have become increasingly popular with consumers (Østerlie and Lerfall 2005) and show a potential as nitrite alternative for pork sausage manufacture.Strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa Duchesne), which has been widely planted in the world, is one of the most commonly consumed berries. It is an important dietary source of fiber and bioactive compounds, both micronutrients and phytochemicals (Tulipani et al., 2008). Strawberries are rich in the content of pigments. These pigments are a group of anthocyanin compounds such as pelargonidin-3-glucoside (Lopes da Silva et al., 1992), and possess the antioxidant activity and bioactivity (Tulipani et al., 2008). Also, strawberry pigments are red and water-soluble (Gil et al., 1997), thus showing a potential in meat product manufacture. However, strawberry pigments face a challenge in product of food because they can be decomposed, which is dependent on temperature, pH, light and other factors (Markaris et al., 1957). To our well known, there has yet been no information published on strawberry pigments used in the produce of meat product. In this paper, our interests are focused on the effects ...