Handbook of Fermented Meat and Poultry

Fidel Toldrá

• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell
• Year: 2014
• Print ISBN: 9781118522691
• eBook ISBN: 9781118522677
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Food Science
• Index: Technology & Engineering

Fermented meat products have been consumed for centuries in many different parts of the world and constitute one of the most important groups of food. Bacterial cultures are used in their manufacture to preserve the meat and confer particular textures and sensory attributes. Examples of fermented meats include salami, chorizo, pepperoni and saucisson.

This fully revised and expanded reference book on meat fermentation presents all the principle fermented meat products and the processing technologies currently used in their manufacture. The 54 chapters of this substantial book are grouped into the following sections:

• Meat fermentation worldwide: overview, production and principles
• Raw materials
• Microbiology and starter cultures for meat fermentation
• Sensory attributes
• Product categories: general considerations
• Semidry-fermented sausages
• Dry-fermented sausages
• Other fermented meats and poultry
• Ripened meat products
• Biological and chemical safety of fermented meat products
• Processing sanitation and quality assurance

There are five new chapters in the second edition that address the following topics:  Smoking and new smoke flavourings; Probiotics; Methodologies for the study of the microbial ecology in fermented sausages; Low sodium in meat products; and Asian sausages.

Handbook of Fermented Meat and Poultry, Second Edition provides readers with a full overview of meat fermentation, the role of microorganisms naturally present and/or added as starter cultures, safety aspects and an account of the main chemical, biochemical, physical and microbiological changes that occur in processing and how they affect final quality. Finally, readers will find the main types of worldwide fermented meat products, typically produced in different areas, with the description of their main characteristics.

Part I
Meat Fermentation Worldwide: Overview, Production, and Principles

Chapter 1
Dry-Fermented Sausages and Ripened Meats: An Overview

Fidel Toldrá¹ and Y.H. Hui²

¹Instituto de Agroquímica y Tecnología de Alimentos (CSIC), Paterna, Valencia, Spain

²Science Technology System, West Sacramento, CA, USA

1.1 Introduction

Drying and smoking were probably the first food-preservation techniques to be developed, in ancient Greece and Rome (Zeuthen, 2007). In fact, the names “sausage” and “salami” probably originate from the Latin words “salsiccia” and “salumen,” respectively (Toldrá, 2012). Historically, the manufacturing procedures used to make fermented sausages were adapted to the climatic conditions of the production area. For instance, Mediterranean meat products are dried to low water activity (a_w) values, taking advantage of the long dry and sunny days, while in Northern Europe fermented sausages require smoking for further preservation (Toldrá, 2006, 2014a). Summer sausage is traditionally produced in the summer and is heated for safety reasons (Zeuthen, 1995).

Preservation results from a series of specific factors known as “hurdle effects” (Leistner, 1992):

• addition of nitrite, salt, and/or sugar;
• reduction of redox potential;
• introduction of lactic acid bacteria (LAB);
• lowering of pH;
• decreasing of a_w;
• smoking.

The sausage remains stable throughout this sequence of hurdles (Leistner, 1995).

LAB play important roles in safety, nutrition, and sensory quality (Toldrá et al., 2001), and develop important reactions essential to the development of adequate color, texture, and flavor (Demeyer & Toldrá, 2004). Details can be found in Parts II and III of this book.

This chapter lists some of the most important fermented sausages produced worldwide. Further details of sausages and ripened meat products from North America, the Mediterranean, and Northern Europe and Asia can be found in Parts VI, VII, VIII, and IX. Space limitation prohibits an in-depth discussion of fermented sausages from other parts of the world; the interested reader can refer to the references for further information.

1.2 Fermented sausages and ripened meats around the world

1.2.1 North America

Manufacturing practices were brought to North America by the first European settlers. Today, many European fermented sausages can be found in northern states such as Wisconsin (Toldrá & Reig, 2007). Lebanon bologna is a semidry-fermented sausage originating from Lebanon County, Pennsylvania. It is produced from beef and black pepper, fermented to a very high pH, and heavily smoked (Rust, 2004). Pepperoni is produced from pork and/or beef and seasoned with red pepper, ground cayenne pepper, pimento, aniseed, and garlic. It has a small diameter and is smoked.

1.2.2 South and Central America

There is a general Spanish and Italian influence on fermented meat products in many Latin America countries. Italian milano and cacciaturi are consumed in Uruguay, Brazil, and Mexico, among other places. In the Andes, traditional fermented sausages are made from llama meat and guanaco.

1.2.3 The Mediterranean

Many types of dry-fermented sausage are produced in the Mediterranean area. They are usually dried, due to the climate, and are rarely smoked. They have a variety of diameters, shapes, sizes, spices, seasonings, and sensory characteristics. Their names differ according to the geographic origin, sometimes even between very close areas (Toldrá, 2006). Pork is the main meat, and fungi starters may be used for development on the external surface (Talon et al., 2004). Salamis of medium diameter (around 6 cm) include French menage, French saucisson d'Alsace, Italian turista, and Spanish salchichón, while those of larger diameter include French varzi, Italian milano, and Italian crespone; the latter may be ripened for more than 60 days (Toldrá & Flores, 2014). Coppa is an Italian salami with cylindrical shape. It is made from pork shoulder butt salted for 7–10 days and dried for 2–4 weeks. Spanish chorizo, which has a strong red color, is seasoned with garlic, pepper, and oregano (Toldrá, 2002). Mortadella bologna is produced from pork meat and fat, and the final sausage is thermally treated to an internal temperature of 68 °C (Toldrá, 2014a).

Dry-cured ham is extensively consumed in Mediterranean countries. It is a dry-cured whole-meat product produced by curing, salting, drying, and ripening for as long as 24, or sometimes even 36, months (Toldrá, 2014b). It receives different names according to the region, such as serrano or ibérico in Spain, prosciutto di Parma or San Danielle in Italy, Bayonne in France, and Ardennes in Belgium (Toldrá, 2014a).

1.2.4 Northern Europe

A good number of fermented meats are produced in Northern Europe. The greuβner salami is produced in Thuringia, Germany. It is a sliceable sausage produced from beef and some pork, as well as fat, and flavored with garlic, pepper, and other spices. It undergoes a long-term fermentation process and cold smoking. The rügenwalder teewurst is a semidry-fermented sausage, also produced from beef and pork, which is fermented and cold-smoked (Gibis & Fischer, 2004). The Austrian katwurst is a long, dried sausage. The Swedish metwursk contains some potato, in addition to spices and seasonings. Other meats can be added to the formulation of sausages in Scandinavian countries, such as horse meat in farepolse, toppen, trondermor...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• List of Contributors
• Preface
• Part I: Meat Fermentation Worldwide: Overview, Production, and Principles
• Part II: Raw Materials
• Part III: Microbiology and Starter Cultures
• Part IV: Sensory Attributes
• Part V: Product Categories: General Considerations
• Part VI: Semidry-Fermented Sausages
• Part VII: Dry-Fermented Sausages
• Part VIII: Fermented Products from Poultry and Other Meats
• Part IX: Ripened Meat Products
• Part X: Biological and Chemical Safety of Fermented Meat Products
• Part XI: Processing Sanitation and Quality Assurance
• Index
• Food Science and Technology Books
• End User License Agreement