The effect of sodium lactate and lactic acid combinations on the microbial, sensory, and chemical attributes of marinated chicken thigh

Abstract

The present study was undertaken to evaluate the chemical, microbiological, and sensory effects of different sodium lactate (SL) and lactic acid (LA) combinations on marinated chicken thigh. The latter were treated with SL and LA combined at various concentrations, namely 0.3 and 0.03; 0.5 and 0.05; 0.6 and 0.06; 0.75 and 0.075; and 0.9 and 0.09%, respectively. The findings indicated that those combinations were efficient (P < 0.05) against the proliferation of various spoilage microorganisms, including aerobic plate count, psychrotrophic populations, Pseudomonas spp., Staphylococcus aureus, Enterobacteriaceae, and Salmonella spp. The results from chemical analyses revealed that the treated thigh underwent significant decreases (P < 0.05) in terms of pH values and total volatile base nitrogen contents. Significant differences (P < 0.05) were, however, detected with regard to their sensory attributes, with SL-LA concentrations of 0.9 and 0.09 yielding the highest scores for the color, texture, and flavor attributes. Overall, the findings demonstrated that the addition of 0.9% SL and 0.09% LA to marinated chicken can help delay the proliferation of spoilage microorganisms, prevent the generation of undesirable chemicals, improve the levels of sensory attributes, and extend the shelf life of products during refrigerated storage. © 2012 Poultry Science Association Inc.