Storage stability of aerobically packaged extended dehydrated chicken meat rings at ambient temperature

The present study was conducted to evaluate the storage stability of aerobically packaged extended dehydrated chicken meat rings during ambient storage at 30 +/- 2 degrees C. Extended dehydrated chicken meat rings were prepared by utilizing spent hen meat (80%), an optimized level of rice flour, refined wheat flour, potato starch, spice mix, common salt, and sodium tripolyphosphate. The control product was prepared in a similar manner except that rice flour was substituted by an equal quantity of spent hen meat. The products were aerobically packaged in low-density polyethylene (LDPE) pouches and analyzed for physicochemical, microbiological, and sensory characteristics at regular intervals of 0, 15, 30, and 45 days during storage. Significant (P < 0.01) effects of treatments on the moisture content, thiobarbituric acid reacting substance (TBARS) value, peroxide value, total plate count, and yeast and mold count and also on the pH (P < 0.05) of the products were noticed. Days of storage significantly (P < 0.01) affected pH value, moisture content, TBARS value, peroxide value, appearance (of both dried and rehydrated and cooked products), flavor, texture, meat flavor intensity, and juiciness and also affected the overall acceptability (P < 0.05) of the products during storage. Treatment x storage days interaction significantly (P < 0.01) affected moisture content of the dehydrated chicken meat rings during storage. These observations indicated that the product can be stored in aerobically packaged LDPE pouches for 45 days without much change in physicochemical, microbiological, and sensory properties.