Quality and Acceptability of Dry Fermented Sausages Prepared with Low Value Pork Raw Material

Abstract

The food industry aims to produce dry fermented sausages (DFS) with high quality, but Alentejano or Iberian pork has a high price, which might jeopardize the sustainability of traditional producers. Considering this fact, the objective of this work was to evaluate the quality and acceptability of DFS made with low value pork raw material from Alentejano purebred sows and a crossbred Iberian × Duroc pigs. The nutritional fat values, microbial and sensorial quality of DFS with different diameters were assessed and the texture and fatty acids (FA) profiles were correlated with sensory attributes. Pork raw material did not influence pH, aw and microbial characteristics of both DFS, but those produced with Alentejano sows presented the highest content of polyunsaturated FA and less saturated FA. Both DFS presented satisfactory appreciations regarding sensorial quality. Practical Applications This work aims to increase knowledge about dry fermented sausage processed with an alternative crossbreed Iberian × Duroc pigs less expensive than the Iberian pigs. This alternative in traditional processing of dry fermented sausages with the maintenance of their quality and consumer acceptability will contribute to the sustainability of all traditional small meat industries and of an economic sector with great importance on the Mediterranean region.

Dry-Cured Meat Products According to the Smoking Regime: Process Optimization to Control Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons

“…These results are similar to those reported before regarding dry-fermented sausages from Portugal and other Mediterranean countries [29,35]. However, these values are higher than those reported by others for Portuguese dry-fermented sausages [30,31], denoting the need to improve both the quality of the raw materials and the hygiene procedures.…”

“…Total mesophilic bacteria counts reflect the higher counts obtained for LAB, as expected in dry-cured products, where these microorganisms are responsible for a slight fermentation during a long period [27,28]. The LAB counts reached 8.0 to 8.8 log cfu/g, which is in accordance with the values reported in dry-cured sausages by several authors [29][30][31]. Staphylococci counts were between 3.6 and 4.9 log cfu/g, with significantly lower counts in non-smoked control sausages.…”

What is the Main Processing Factor Influencing Staphylococcus Species Diversity in Different Manufacturing Units?

“…In fact, the stabilization of final products was obtained by the fermentation associated with smoking and drying being corroborated by the microbial data presented and resulting from the effect of lower pH (5.26 ± 0.07) and a W (0.860 ± 0.013) values, registered for long‐curing products. These intrinsic factors influencing microbial inhibition result from the processes applied to meat products (Alves et al., ; Gonzales‐Barron et al., ).…”

“…According to the units processing, we can differentiate three categories of final products, namely, without smoking step, with a short smoking step combined with controlled drying, and with a long smoking step (Table ). Some units presented short‐curing and long‐curing final products depending from their diameter and resulting from a combination of short or long smoking with short or long drying according to product diameter (Alves et al., ). The establishment of a relationship between audit score of the units and the presence of specific species isolated from final products and environment was possible; however, the presence of S. xylosus can be associated with higher count of enterobacteria and consequently the score of the units were lower (according to the previous requirements described to audit checklist score) than the other associations noticed (Figure D).…”

Autochthonous Starter Cultures Are Able to Reduce Biogenic Amines in a Traditional Portuguese Smoked Fermented Sausage

“…Casquete et al [53]-in Spanish chorizo and salchichón, inoculated with Pediococcus acidilactici and Staphylococcus vitulus at concentrations of approximately 5 x 10 7 cells/g of meat batter-started the curing process with mean values between 1.48 and 2.34 log cfu/g and ended up with mean values close to 2 log cfu/g in the end-products, with no significant differences between treatments. Alves et al [61] obtained values close to 0.70 log cfu/g in non-inoculated Alentejano pig sausages and close to 1.5 log cfu/g for non-inoculated Iberian X Duroc pig sausages, for the end-products. Our results were even lower than those in the end-products, which may be an indicator of microbial stability, since high mould concentrations in end-products may lead to sensory impairments [17,62].…”