Effect of carotenoid pigments extracted from papaya epicarp (Carica papaya L.) on the characteristics of Frankfurter sausages

Abstract

The industrialization of papaya generates a large amount of organic waste, which is rich in antioxidant compounds, especially carotenoids. The purpose of the present article was to study the influence of carotenoid pigments extracted from the papaya epicarp as a partial substitute for nitrites in Frankfurt sausages. Four concentrations of lipid extract of papaya epicarp were analyzed in said sausages. While the control sample had 0 % substitution, 25 %, 50 % and 75 % substitution of nitrite was added to the other samples. The sausages were kept at 6 ± 2 °C for 30 days. The chemical composition, pH, water holding capacity, water activity, emulsion stability, color coordinates, texture profile and sensory appearance were analyzed, and for the sausage that presented the best physicochemical parameters, the stability in the time at 0, 10, 20 and 30 days of storage. It was obtained that adding the papaya epicarp extract to a concentration of 25 % did not affect the physicochemical parameters. In addition, the texture and color characteristics, as well as the sensory evaluation showed the best results for said concentration, guaranteeing stability up to a period of 30 days of storage under vacuum packing conditions and under refrigeration (6 ± 2 °C). A new alternative is proposed to minimize the negative action of nitrites in analyzed Frankfurt sausages, replacing them with antioxidant compounds obtained from a raw material of vegetable origin.