Effect of incorporation of Gac (Momordica cochinchinensis) aril powder on the qualities of reduced-nitrite Vienna sausage.
This study was aimed to determine the effect of Gac aril powder on the quality and storage characteristics of reduced-nitrite Vienna sausage. Initially, Vienna sausage with 125 ppm NaNO2 without Gac aril powder (control) and 75 ppm NaNO2 with 0, 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5% (w/w) Gac aril powder were produced. With increasing Gac aril powder, redness (a*), yellowness (b*) and lycopene content of the reduced-nitrite samples increased while the lightness (L*), pH, cooking loss and residual nitrite decreased (p ≤ 0.05). All reduced-nitrite samples prepared with Gac aril powder were darker and redder than the control (p ≤ 0.05). The Vienna sausage produced from a combination of 75 ppm NaNO2 and 1.0% Gac aril powder had sensory likability scores comparable to the control sample with 125 ppm NaNO2 (p > 0.05). The quality changes of the 1.0% Gac aril reduced-nitrite sausage and the control sample with 125 ppm NaNO2 during storage at 5±1oC for 28 days resulted in residual nitrite of both samples being lowered with storage time, while their TBA values rose (p ≤ 0.05). Based on microbial counts, both samples were considered safe.