Texture, lipid oxidation and sensory characteristics of ground pork patties prepared with commercially available salts

Our objective was to determine sensory, processing and shelf-life characteristics of ground pork mixed with commercial salt varieties of different purities. Commercially available salt preparations ranging from 0.223 to 3.714 mg/kg combined copper, iron and manganese were included at 1 g/100 g in ground pork patties. Patties were stored frozen for 0, 3, 6 or 9 weeks, and then evaluated for lipid oxidation, break strength, and sensory characteristics. Furthermore, the ability of different commercial salts to extract meat proteins was evaluated. Inclusion of any salt in ground pork patties increased lipid oxidation at 3.6 and 9 weeks of storage, increased break strength and increased salty flavor. Furthermore, all salts were more effective at extracting salt-soluble proteins than buffer containing no salt. Few meaningful differences, however, were detected between different commercial salts. All salts tested resulted in equal amounts of lipid oxidation with storage, salty flavor, and protein extraction. With regards to break strength, patties with highest purity salt required marginally more force to break than patties with less pure salts. These data suggest that differing purity levels of salt included at 1 g/100 g in pork patties have little effect on sensory, shelf-life or processing characteristics of ground pork. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.