CHANGES IN THE SENSORY PROFILE OF NITRITE-FREE SALAMI FORMULATED WITH THE ADDITION OF FRUIT POWDER MIXTURES.

This study evaluated the effects of incorporating fruit powder mixtures, consisting of sour cherries powder (SCP), blackcurrants powder (BCP) and cranberries powder (CP), as natural sodium nitrite substitutes on the sensory attributes of nitrite-free salami. Four powder mixtures (SCP+BCP, BCP+CP, CP+SCP and BCP+CP+SCP) have been included in the salami formulas at a dose to provide a total phenol content (TPC) of 90, 200 and 300 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/kg meat, with the minimum dose set according to the level of nitrite content per kg of processed meat (90 mg nitrite/kg). Before use, the fruits were slowly convective dehydrated at a temperature of 60°C. The results revealed that the addition of fruit powder mixtures impacted on the appearance of sample, while other sensory characteristics did not show any significant change. The highest overall acceptability was recorded for sample with BCP+CP+SCP in a dose that provided a TPC of 300 GAE/kg meat. Thus, fruit powders could become an attractive option in the formulation of nitrite-free meat products due to their high total phenol content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]