Changes in Some Physico-Chemical Properties and γ-Aminobutyric Acid Content of Kimchi during Fermentation and Storage

Abstract

In this study, we investigated changes in some physico-chemical and biochemical properties of Kimchi during fermentation and storage. After fermenting Kimchi at 15℃ for 23, 36, 40, 44, and 60 hrs during the first week, we stored it at -1℃ in a Kimchi refrigerator until the end of 8 th week. The pH of samples fermented for 36 hr, 40 hr, 44 hr and 60 hr sharply decreased during the first seven days and then slowly decreased. Acidities of samples fermented for 36 hr, 40 hr and 44 hr sharply increased for the first seven days. According to measured changes of lactic acid bacteria number, samples fermented for 60 hr revealed the largest augmentation in the number of lactobacilli for the first seven days. The γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) content of the sample fermented for 40 hr was the most superior, with an early increase and maintenance of GABA content, which maintained a maximum 20 mg per 100 g of Kimchi sample on the seventh, fourteenth, and twenty eighth days. These results suggest that relatively enhanced levels of GABA in Kimchi samples can be produced and maintained by controlling the fermentation and storage processes, as with the 40 hr fermented sample conditions.