The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential of incorporating the probiotic L. reuteri PL519 into the manufacturing of Iberian dry fermented sausages, and to observe its effect on the sensory properties of these meat products. Specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was carried out to detect the presence of probiotic strain at high counts in the inoculated sausages. Changes due to probiotic inoculation on physicochemical parameters were determined and the impact on sensory quality evaluated. Dry fermented sausages inoculated with L. reuteri PL519 may be considered as functional products according to the counts of this strain found at the end of processing. Inoculation with L. reuteri PL519 increased the amount of acetic acid, protein, and lipid degradation products in dry fermented sausages. The differences observed in the descriptive sensorial analysis corresponded, however, to a little impact on overall acceptability since no significant changes were found between the control and L. reuteri PL519 batch in the hedonic test.
Practical application: Processing and marketing of Iberian dry fermented sausages with functional characteristics.
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