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Title: Effect of salmon type, and presence/absence of bone on color, sensory characteristics, and consumer acceptability of pureed and chunked infant food products

Author
item DE SANTOS, F - UNIV. OF ILLINOIS
item RAMAMOORTHI, L - University Of Illinois
item Bechtel, Peter
item SMILEY, S - UNIV. OF ALASKA
item BREWER, S - UNIV. OF ILLINOIS

Submitted to: Journal of Sensory Studies
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/24/2010
Publication Date: 8/14/2010
Citation: De Santos, F.A., Ramamoorthi, L., Bechtel, P.J., Smiley, S., Brewer, S. 2010. Effect of salmon type, and presence/absence of bone on color, sensory characteristics, and consumer acceptability of pureed and chunked infant food products. Journal of Sensory Studies. 75(6):S279-S285.

Interpretive Summary: The purpose of this research was to evaluate the effect of salmon type (red or pink), the presence or absence of bone, and processing on sensory and physical characteristics of a puréed product for infants and toddlers that complies with the FDA definition of a toddler “high meat dinner”. Presence of bone in pink salmon resulted in a more sweaty odor score and more metallic after taste in infant food than did absence of bone. Differences in metallic flavor, viscosity and cohesiveness due to bone were eliminated by processing. Red salmon color was damaged less than that of pink salmon. Given that processing is a necessity for safety, infant food from red salmon would likely retain better color, and odor/flavor differences would be eliminated by processing. A salmon infant food product could make a significant contribution to the diets of infants and toddlers because cold water fish are good sources of omega-3 fatty acids and because introduction of fish into the diet at an early age has the potential to increase fish consumption in children and adults.

Technical Abstract: The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of salmon type (pink/red), bone (presence/absence) and retort processing on an infant food product. Salmon fillets were cooked (3 min), homogenized (40%) in water (55%) then starch (5%) was added. The product was hot-filled into glass jars then still retort processed. Samples from pink salmon were the lightest (L* = 68 to 74), least red (a* = 3 to 6), and least yellow (b* = 16 to 20). Visual evaluation confirmed that samples from pink salmon were very cream-colored. Samples from red salmon lost some color intensity during processing, but retained the characteristic salmon color. Prior to processing, salmon without bones had a more intense salmon odor than did that without bones; processing eliminated this difference. Sweaty odor differed among salmon types prior to processing but the retort process eliminated these differences. Retort processing intensified metallic notes.