Quality changes and shelf-life prediction of pre-processed snakehead fish fillet seasoned by yeast extract: Affected by packaging method and storage temperature

Abstract

This study investigated changes in physical, sensory, and safety qualities of pre-processed snakehead fish fillets seasoned with yeast extract and packaged under atmospheric pressure and vacuum during 4 °C and 0 °C storage, and predicted their shelf-life. The differently packaged fillets kept decreasing in water-holding capacity, lightness, whiteness, texture, and sensory properties, with better performance for 0 °C storage plus vacuum packaging in delaying quality deterioration of fish fillets. The zero-order kinetic model well fitted the changes in 2-thiobarbituric acid (TBA) and total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N) of the fillets. The TVB-N-based predicted shelf-life was 5 and 7 days at 4 °C storage, and 25 and 30 days at 0 °C storage for the atmospheric- and vacuum-packaged fish fillets, respectively. The TBA-based predicted shelf-life was shorter than the days predicted by TVB-N, and the shelf-life based on TVB-N and TBA was in good agreement with the time for the unacceptable and poor sensory properties, respectively. This study has shed some light on the selection of packaging and storage conditions and shelf-life prediction of pre-processed snakehead fish fillets seasoned with yeast extract.