Improving the Quality of Frozen Fillets of Semi-Dried Gourami Fish (Trichogaster pectoralis) by Using Sorbitol and Citric Acid

Semi-dried gourami fish (Trichogaster pectoralis) is popularly consumed domestically and exported as a frozen product. This study was conducted to prevent deterioration quality in frozen fish fillets during storage. This research aims to investigate the effects of sorbitol and citric acid at concentrations of 2.5% and 5% (w/w) of frozen gourami fish fillets compared to the fillets soaked in distilled water on physicochemical properties, such as cooking loss, cooking yield, drip loss, pH, TBARS, color, and texture profile analyses (TPA) during storage at -18 ± 2 °C for a period of 0, 20, and 40 days. The fish soaked in sorbitol and citric acid solutions had significantly (p < 0.05) higher protein and fat contents than the control sample. Sorbitol was able to retain moisture in the product; therefore, the drip loss and cooking loss were the lowest, and cooking yield was the highest among other samples (p < 0.05). The addition of 5% (w/v) citric acid in frozen fish fillets can significantly retard the thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) (p < 0.05) during storage when compared to fish soaked in sorbitol solution kept for the same period. However, the addition of citric acid resulted in low quality in texture and color of frozen fish fillets. The use of sorbitol was the best alternative in frozen fish fillet product due to reducing the negative effects of freezing quality of the products and generating a cryoprotective effect compared to the fillets soaked in distilled water.