Mohamed Abd Elgadir

This study investigates the impact of dipping in food-grade citric acid on the shelf-life extension of fresh camel meat stored at refrigeration temperature. Fresh camel meat slices were treated with citric acid at concentrations of 0.5%, 1.0%, and 1.5%. The samples were then drip-dried packed into the vinyl acetate packs (VAP) and stored in a refrigerator at 5°C for 15 days. The parameters studied included pH, water activity, Hunter color values, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) values, and total plate count (TPC). The pH of the treated samples decreased in comparison with the initial value of 5.30 (untreated sample) to a range within 4.20–4.47. The treated samples showed lower water activity values (0.95–0.99) than the control samples (0.97–0.987), especially the samples treated with 1.5% citric acid (0.95). The water activity (aw) values did not significantly differ among the treated samples. The control sample had an initial a* (a* — redness as per the colour chart) value of 16.4. Dipping the samples in citric acid significantly reduced the a* values to a range of 7.3 to 11.6. The red colour values in the control sample decreased during its storage to a range of 12.8 to 14.3. On the first day of treatment, the control sample exhibited a TBARS value of 0.26 mg/kg MA, which was significantly higher than that of the treated samples. The samples dipped in a 1.00% acid solution demonstrated the lowest TBARS values at 0.12 mg/kg MA. The TBARS values levels for the samples treated with 0.5%, 1.0%, and 1.00% citric acid were generally low, peaking at 0.23 to 0.29 mg of malondialdehyde/kg after 15 days. The control sample exhibited a total plate count (TPC) of 5.3 CFU/g, with no significant difference observed between the control sample and the sample treated with 0.5% citric acid. No microorganisms were detected on the first day in camel meat samples treated with citric acid at concentrations of 1.0% and 1.5%. At the end of the storage period, the TPC levels in acid-treated samples remained below 107 CFU/g on days 5th, 10th, and 15th. The shelf life of the treated camel meat was extended to 15 days.

Generally speaking, vegetables are boiled in a pot of boiling water, but the longer they boil, the more vitamins and minerals they lose. As a result, it is not recommended to prepare vegetables for a long time. The phytochemical contents of fruits and vegetables are produced through various production processes. Since vitamin C aids in the maintenance of connective tissues in the body, such as the skin, blood vessels, and bones, it is regarded as a physiological antioxidant and an essential nutrient for good health. It also contributes to several critical and significant bodily processes. Furthermore, vitamin C is necessary for synthesizing collagen, which is needed for the immune system, protein metabolism, and wound healing. Updates on how processing techniques impact processed fruit and vegetable products’ Vitamin C are presented in this chapter.

The objective of this research is to evaluate quality properties and storage stability of beef patties formulated from fresh beef incorporated with food-grade lactic acid (LA). Fresh beef was purchased from the local market immediately after slaughter, minced and formulated using water incorporated with food-grade lactic acid in concentrations of 0.0% (control); 0.5%; 0.75% and 1.00%. The LA-incorporated formulations were used in the preparation of the patties. The prepared patties were stored at a refrigeration temperature of 5 ºC for 12 days. pH, instrumental color, texture profile analysis (TPA), water activity and total viable count (TVC) were investigated. At the end of the storage period, the patties were cooked and sensory evaluated. The results revealed a significant (p ≤ 0.05) decrease in pH of the control patties from 6.2 ± 0.1 to 5.1 ± 0.2–5.4 ± 0.2 from day 8 to day 12 of the storage time. The same trend was observed in the LA-incorporated patties. The LA-incorporated patties did not show any significant differences (p ≥ 0.05) in the water activity values through all storage time. At the end of the storage time, the control had the TVC value of almost near the spoilage limit, while all LA-incorporated patties had significantly (p ≤ 0.05) lower TVC compared with the control. The results revealed high stability in the physicochemical properties as well as total microbial growth during the storage period. The hardness of the LA-incorporated patties was significantly (p ≤ 0.05) lower than that of the control sample. There was no significant (p ≥ 0.05) difference in overall sensory acceptability of the patties made from beef incorporated with food-grade lactic acid compared to the control. This study suggests that incorporating fresh beef with food-grade lactic acid in the mentioned concentrations could result in great benefits of increasing the storage life of fresh beef products with no effect on sensory quality attributes.

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.

Meat by-products such as bones, skin, horns, hooves, feet, skull, etc., are produced from slaughtered mammals. Innovative solutions are very important to achieving sustainability and obtaining the added value of meat by-products with the least impact on the environment. Gelatin, which is obtained from products high in collagen, such as dried skin and bones, is used in food processing, and pharmaceuticals. Chitosan is derived from chitin and is well recognized as an edible polymer. It is a natural product that is non-toxic and environmentally friendly. Recently, chitosan has attracted researchers’ interests due to its biological activities, including antimicrobial, antitumor, and antioxidant properties. In this review, article, we highlighted the recent available information on the application of gelatin and chitosan as antioxidants, antimicrobials, food edible coating, enzyme immobilization, biologically active compound encapsulation, water treatment, and cancer diagnosis.

Meat and meat products are recognized as excellent sources of nutrients for humans. It is a rich source of lipids, proteins, minerals, and vitamins. They provide a favorable environment for microbial growth. Lipid oxidation and microbial growth are the two main causes of meat deterioration. To preserve meat and meat products consumers nowadays demand nutritious foods that do not include artificial preservatives. Essential oils (EOs) attracted the interest of the food industry to satisfy consumers’ demands. EOs are utilized in meat and meat products applications because they are generally recognized as safe (GRAS) as compared with synthetic antioxidants and antimicrobial materials. They are aromatic oily liquids produced from different parts of plants such as seeds, leaves, flowers, and roots and are recognized to inhibit both lipid oxidation as well as the growth and survival of spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms. Recently, applications of different types of EOs were introduced in meat and meat products. This article provides a recent overview of the application of selected essential oils and their effects on lipid oxidation and microbial growth of some meat and meat products to improve their quality during refrigeration storage.

A binary mixture of starch–starch or starch with other biopolymers such as protein and non-starch polysaccharides could provide a new approach in producing starch-based food products. In the context of food processing, a specific adjustment in the rheological properties plays an important role in regulating production processing and optimizing the applicability, stability, and sensory of the final food products. This review examines various biopolymer mixtures based on starch and the influence of their interaction on physicochemical and rheological properties of the starch-based foods. It is evident that the physicochemical and rheological characteristics of the biopolymers mixture are highly dependent on the type of starch and other biopolymers that make them up mixing ratios, mixing procedure and presence of other food ingredients in the mixture. Understanding these properties will lead to improve the formulation of starch–based foods and minimize the need to resort to chemically modified starch.