Sensory acceptability of 'Sremska' sausage made from meat of pigs of different ages

Abstract

Dry fermented sausages are one of the most valued groups of meat products. Specific environmental conditions determined the production technology, which has remained mostly unchanged until the present day. These products possess specific, sometimes unique sensory characteristics. One of the most famous product in our country, belonging to this group, is Sremska sausage. Traditionally, Sremska sausage was made from meat of late maturing pig breeds that were slaughtered at the age of over 12 months and which, during the last decades, for well-known reasons, were suppressed by modern breeds and their crossbreeds. Today, meat of pigs of about six months of age, as well as pigs older than 12 months, is used for sausage production. Taste and aroma of dry and fermented products are formed, among other things, by the activity of endogenic proteinases, peptidases and lipase and it is well-known that their levels and activity are conditioned by the age of pigs. Colour intensity and stability, another important sensory parameter indicating the quality of fermented sausages, is closely associated with the colour of meat used in production, while the texture is a result of complex influences, including composition and quality of fatty tissue, dynamics and intensity of pH changes and presence of connective tissue in fresh meat. This paper examines the impact of pig age on biochemical and sensory parameters in Sremska sausage during production and three-month storage period. Meat and fatty tissue used in the experiments were from Swedish Landrace, more specifically six-month old fatteners (variant A) and 12-month old cull sows (variant B). Biochemical changes in sausages made from meat of pigs between six and 12 months of age basically differed only slightly. Dynamics of pH value changes and the content of non-protein nitrogen showed similar tendencies, as well as the electrophoretic profiles of sarcoplasmic and myofibrillar proteins. The impact of pig age on sensory characteristics of Sremska sausage was pronounced. Variant A sausages had the best appearance and texture when compared to variant B on days 14, 60 and 105 of the experiment. The colour of product A was also more appealing during the experiment. As for taste and aroma, variant A was inferior on day 14, but during storage, the taste and aroma of this variant improved, unlike those of variant B, in which these parameters deteriorated. Variant A sausages had much lighter cross-section (P (lt) 0,05). On the surface and the cross-section of variant A, statistically significantly higher participation of red colour (a*) was registered, than in variant B.

Suve fermentisane kobasice poseduju specifične, nekada jedinstvene senzorne karakteristike. Sremska kobasica je jedan od najpoznatijih proizvoda iz ove grupe proizvoda u našoj zemlji. Tradicionalno se sremska kobasica proizvodila od mesa kasnostasnih rasa svinja, starijih od 12 meseci, koje su tokom prošlih decenija potisnutle plemenite rase svinja, i njihovi melezi. Danas se, najčešće, koristi meso tovljenika starih oko 6 meseci i meso svinja starijih od 12 meseci. Ukus i miris sušenih i fermentisanih proizvoda formiraju se, između ostalog, aktivnošću endogenih proteinaza, peptidaza i lipaza, a njihov nivo i aktivnost uslovljeni su starošću svinja. Intenzitet i postojanost boje u tesnoj je vezi sa bojom mesa koje se koristi, a tekstura je rezultat složenih uticaja, od kojih se ističu: sastav i kvalitet masnog tkiva, dinamika i intenzitet promena pH vrednosti, kao i razvijenost vezivnotkivnih komponenti sirovine. Ispitivan je uticaj starosti svinja na biohemijske i senzorne parametre sremske kobasice tokom proizvodnje i tromesečnog skladištenja. Korišćeni su meso i masno tkivo svinja rase švedski landras, i to: šestomesečnih tovljenika (varijanta A) i krmača starih 12 meseci izlučenih iz priploda (varijanta B). Biohemijske promene, u osnovi, se malo razlikuju. Dinamika promene pH vrednosti, sadržaj neproteinskog azota i elektroforetski profili sarkoplazmatskih i miofibrilarnih proteina, u obe varijante, pokazuju veoma slične tendencije. Uticaj starosti svinja na senzorne karakteristike ispitivanih varijanti sremske kobasice je izražen. Kobasice varijante A imale su bolji spoljašnji izgled i boju. U pogledu mirisa, varijanta A, je na početku ogleda, bila inferiorna, ali se tokom skladištenja miris ove varijante poboljšavao, za razliku od varijante B, kod koje se miris pogoršavao. U toku čuvanja, ukus varijante B ocenjen je sličnim ocenama, dok se ukus varijante A poboljšao. Na površini i na preseku kobasica varijante A utvrđeno je statistički značajno veće učešće crvene boje, a, takođe, su i značajno veće svetloće na preseku.