Changes in the Characteristics of Rohu Fish (Labeo Rohita) Sausage During Storage at Different Temperatures

Sausage is a commonly used food and it is gaining wide popularity in the recent years. In this work, sausage was prepared from minced Rohu (Labeo rohita) fillets using a standard recipe with and without addition of the preservative, potassium sorbate, in permitted levels and packed in natural casings. The prepared sausages showed appealing appearance with characteristic resilient properties. The evaluation of their physical, chemical, organoleptic and microbiological characteristics during storage at 5 and 25C was carried out. After 2 days of storage at ambient temperature, the control samples (without potassium sorbate) lost their cohesive nature and appeared pasty and sticky, accompanied by water oozing out and detachment from the casing due to fermentation and subsequent gas formation, as evidenced by fermented odor, decreased pH and increased total bacterial count. In the case of samples with potassium sorbate (treated), these symptoms of spoilage were observed after 4 days of storage. Similarly, the control samples at refrigerated temperature (5C) were found spoiled after 13 days of storage and those with the preservative were spoiled after 16 days. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS Acceptability of freshwater fish to the market can be increased by value addition. Sausage is already a well-accepted product in the commercial market. Freshwater fish has a muddy flavor, which is an unpalatability for consumption. Therefore, we introduced the addition of mint to avoid the muddy flavor. We tried different storage conditions for the sausage and tried the effect of potassium sorbate for increasing shelf life. Spices such as cloves, cinnamon, ginger, etc., were added to the sausage, which were also found to increase the shelf life. From the study, we have optimized the suitable temperature and storage days for obtaining the acceptable product.