Effect of 𝘓𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘶𝘴 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘶𝘮 L125 strain with probiotic potential on physicochemical, microbiological and sensorial characteristics of dry-fermented sausages

Abstract

The performance of the Lactobacillus plantarum L125 strain with probiotic potential, previously isolated from a traditional Greek fermented sausage, was assessed as an adjunct culture for the production of dry-fermented pork sausages. The probiotic was added in the meat batter with the commercial starter cultures and the microbial populations were estimated during fermentation, ripening and storage at 4 and 12 °C, respectively. Physicochemical analyses (pH and aᵥᵥ), sensory evaluation and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) were also performed, while the presence of L125 strain was monitored by Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) counts at the inoculation time were 8.21 and 6. 44 log CFU/g for the probiotic and control samples, respectively, while the L125 strain maintained high population levels (> 6 log CFU/g) during storage. At the end of the ripening, the products exhibited similar pH values of 4.46 and 4.42 and aᵥᵥ values of 0.87 and 0.85 for the control and probiotic case, respectively. FTIR spectroscopy application in combination with data analytics, resulted in the acceptable estimation of LAB population, but further studies are needed to improve the technique's performance. Overall, the Lb. plantarum L125 was found to possess desirable technological characteristics, indicating its effectiveness to be used in fermented sausage manufacturing.