Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of salting and packaging treatments on liquid-smoked rainbow trout fillets during refrigerated storage (4°C) for 120 days. Treatments included the following: V1 (vacuum packaged- 35% brine), M1 (modified atmosphere packaged- 50% CO₂ + 50% N₂- 35% brine), V2 (vacuum packaged- 70% brine) and M2 (modified atmosphere packaged- 70% brine). Fillets were subjected to microbiological (total aerobic mesophilic bacteria, psychrotrophic bacteria, Pseudomonas, lactic acid bacteria, Enterobacteriaceae, yeast and mould) and chemical (pH, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances-TBARS, total volatile base nitrogen-TVB-N) analyses on 0, 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, 90, 105 and 120^th days. The number of microorganisms, TBARS and TVB-N values increased according to increment of storage. Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) gave better results than vacuum packaging in terms of all investigated parameters. Moreover, M2 was effective in extending the shelf life of rainbow trout fillets.

Key words: Oncorhynchus mykiss, liquid smoking, modified atmosphere packaging (MAP), vacuum, brine salting, shelf life.