Antioxidant potential of herbs and spices in nitrite-reduced frankfurter sausages

Abstract

Nitrites are used in meat processing as a preservative, but there is a need to reduce their usage because of their potential harmful effects on consumers’ health. The antioxidant potential of different herbs and spices in nitrite-reduced frankfurter type sausages and their influence on the products’ sensory properties were investigated. The results show the nitrite-reduced sausages enriched with individual herbs or spices as a source of phenolic compounds had significant antioxidant potential, which was the highest in sausages with rosemary followed by sausages with thyme, black pepper, turmeric, and red paprika. Spice-enriched sausages had better sensory properties then the control sausages after chill storage.