Cured Pigment and Color Development in Fermented Sausage Containing Glucono-Delta-Lactone1

Abstract

Addition of 0.41% glucono-delta-lactone (GDL) to meat mixtures for fermented sausages produced an immediate acidulation response, lowering the initial pH from 6.0 to 5.4. After fermentation, control sausages had a pH of 5.1 which decreased to 5.0 at 16 days of drying. Sausages containing GDL had a pH of 4.8 at the end of the fermentation phase and the pH remained constant through heat processing and drying. Additional acidity from GDL usage promoted greater (P < 0.05) conversion of the total heme pigments to the nitric oxide heme pigment at each stage of processing examined. Although more pigment production occurred, sausages with GDL lost cured pigment upon dehydration at the same rate as control sausages. Color values showed a more rapid increase in ‘aL’ values for sausage containing GDL. Sample L and ‘bL’ values were similar for both sausage groups at each process phase.