Chemical and sensory quality of sheep liver pâté prepared with 'variety meat'

Abstract

Many edible meat by-products produced from sheep slaughter are often wasted but represent excellent sources of many nutrients. The preparation of pâté may be an alternative use for this raw material and may contribute to the development of a sheep sector by offering new products to the consumer market. The objective of this work was to produce and evaluate the quality of sheep pâté made with blood, liver and trimmed meat. The pâté formulation was composed of 12% meat, 25% liver, 13% blood, 20% water and 30% fat, as well as spices and seasoning. The product had high iron content (9.0 mg/100 g). The measured levels of essential amino acids exceeded the recommended values for adults. The sheep liver pâté showed a significant percentage of linoleic acid (16.68%), which is essential to the human body. The pâté produced was in accordance with the requirements of the Brazilian legislation regarding chemical and microbiological parameters, able to be edible, and showed good sensory acceptance. This study suggests that the development of sheep liver pâté is a viable alternative to add value to edible sheep slaughter by-products by generating a product with high nutritional value.