Effect of functional ingredients and vegetable oils on the technological properties and microstructure of emulsified cooked sausages

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the incorporation of vegetable oils (chia, milk thistle and pumpkin seed oils) and non-meat functional ingredients, such as quinoa flour or potato starch, into the manufacture of emulsified cooked sausages with reduced animal fat content. The samples were evaluated with respect to the texture properties, emulsion stability, colour and microstructural characteristics of the reformulated meat products. The sausages formulated with quinoa flour were found to have better emulsion stability and lower hardness, gumminess and adhesiveness values according to the results of the TPA analysis. Furthermore, higher L* and b* and lower а* values were measured in these samples compared to the analogical samples prepared with potato starch. The milk thistle oil led to the highest a* and the lowest b* and h (C) values, whereas the samples containing pumpkin seed oil were characterised by increased values in the yellow spectrum and the highest lightness of all samples studied. The SEM images of the samples formulated with the addition of vegetable oils and quinoa flour exhibited a more uniform distribution of the individual components restructured into a more compact protein network, unlike the samples made with potato starch, which had rougher and less organised morphological structure.