Influence of Bacterial Cellulose (nata) on the Physicochemical and Sensory Properties of Frankfurter

UNLABELLED: The physicochemical and sensory characteristics of pork frankfurters containing different levels (10% to 30%) of bacterial cellulose (nata) were evaluated. Emulsion stability of the raw meat batter decreased with the addition of nata. For nata-added treatments, increasing levels of nata in frankfurters resulted in decreased textural hardness and shear values. Sensory results indicated that N10 and N20 had significantly higher firmness scores than N30 and control. However, juiciness score did not differ for all treatments. Incorporation of nata at lower levels (10% to 20%) did not have detrimental effects on the physicochemical, textural, sensory, and microbiological properties of regular-fat frankfurters. Addition of a higher level (30%) of nata essentially produced comparable sensory properties to the control, but lower levels of nata in frankfurters yielded higher sensory firmness and instrumental hardness values. Based on the composite results, manufacture of regular-fat frankfurter containing 10% to 20% high-fiber nata resulted in product quality comparable to the control. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: We demonstrated the manufacture of quality-improved frankfurters with the inclusion of a high-fiber functional ingredient, nata.