Relationship between sensory attributes of bakasang (a traditional Indonesian fermented fish product) and its physicochemical properties

Quantitative descriptive analysis and physicochemical analysis were carried out to assess the relationship of the sensory attributes of bakasang (a traditional Indonesian fermented fish product) to its physicochemical properties. Pearson correlation analysis and partial least-squares regression (PLS-R) were used to analyze the data. Two PLS-R models were established for relating six physicochemical properties to 12 sensory attributes. The first PLS-R model indicated that salty, umami, bitter, and bitter aftertaste showed an excellent correlation to moisture content, water activity (aw), salt content, and free amino nitrogen. The second model indicated that sulphury meaty, overripe cheese, sweaty, and ammonia were positively correlated with the moisture content, aw, salt content, and total volatile bases. A microbiological quality test of this product indicated that it meets the standards of the Indonesian National Standard Quality of fish sauce.