Effect of Sodium Chloride Concentration on Cooking Time Calculation and Sensory Evaluation of Fish Sausage

Abstract

This research was conducted to evaluate the effect of the addition of sodium chloride (NaCl) at different concentrations (0–3.0%) on the theoretical and real cooking time and sensory evaluation of the fish sausage. The fish sausage was prepared using 2:1.2:1 minced fish, sago starch, and water with added NaCl at a concentration of 1.5% to the formulation, and the sausage was cooked for 180 seconds (3 min) at 180°C to accomplish both the correct cooking time and sensory evaluation properties. Theoretical and real cooking time methods were calculated using a pre-calibrated thermocouple to reach the target core temperature of 75oC at the centre of the sausage. The optimum NaCl concentration and cooking time were identified from the cooking methods and sensory evaluation. The results revealed that increasing the addition of NaCl to the sausage formulations significantly increased the core temperature of the sausage during cooking. There was a reverse relationship between the added percentage of sodium chloride and the calculated cooking time; as the addition of sodium chloride increased, a shorter cooking time was obtained until we reached the target core temperature of 75oC. The predicted cooking time was 195.171 seconds, and the real cooking time was 180 seconds.