Incorporation of pig back fat in restructured dry cured ham to facilitate the release of unsaturated fatty acids and generation of volatile compounds

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of incorporating pig back fat in restructured dry cured ham (RDH) on its free fatty acid profile (FFA) and the volatile compounds released. Fresh raw hams were skinned, boned, and cut into meat cubes (4–6 × 4–6 × 4–6 cm). The meat cubes were restructured with 0, 2, and 4% pig back fat paste into raw restructured ham. After 30 days of ripening, the FFA and volatiles in the RDH were identified using gas chromatography and gas chromatography mass spectrometry, respectively. The results showed that exogenous pig back fat incorporation from 2 to 4% gave rise to increased neutral lipase activity (p < 0.05) and to enhanced lipid degradation and unsaturated fatty acid release in the RDH sample. A total of 63 volatile compounds were isolated from RDH. The most abundant volatiles were alcohols, followed by esters and aldehydes. The chromatographic areas of the total volatile amount, short chain esters, 3‐hydroxy‐2‐butanone, 2‐nonanone, long chain hydrocarbons, and pyrazines increased with pig back fat incorporation, suggesting that exogenous pig back fat incorporation could improve the sensorial quality of restructured dry cured ham.Practical application: Hams produced from genotypes with high intramuscular fat have more intense and persistent aroma, because intramuscular triacylglycerols are a good trap for most aroma compounds and also a source of volatile (aromatic) compounds. Nowadays, mixed diet feed systems or other specific feeding strategies could improve the fat content and composition of raw ham, but led to lower nutritional and sensory quality of hams. Perhaps, the major problem for the relatively poor quality of dry cured ham may be the leanness of modern genotypes, and the pigs from these genotypes are not suitable for dry cured ham production. Thus, thinking from another perspective, through incorporating exogenous pig back fat directly into raw ham, the present work have successfully improved the sensorial properties of dry cured hams.Restructured dry cured hams (RDH) with different pig back fat levels were successfully manufactured. This work shown that large differences in the free unsaturated fatty acid and volatile compounds of RDH can be caused by the exogenous pig back fat incorporation. An increase in pig back fat level from 2 to 4% in RDH significantly enhanced the release of unsaturated fatty acid, and facilitated the generation of volatile compounds including esters, ketones, aliphatic hydrocarbons, and aromatic hydrocarbons.