Assessment of quality and shelf-life of salt-smoked cured products from Pangasius catfish at various temperatures

Pangasius catfish (Pangasianodon hypophthalmus) is popularly cultured in Bangladesh, but the farmers usually suffer financial losses due to their low market price. Development of new value-added products will enhance its popularity and acceptability to the consumers. This study was conducted to develop smoked products from pangasius catfish, to evaluate their quality and shelf-life at ambient (30-35°C) and refrigeration temperatures (4°C). Two treatments, dipped for 15 min in 10% (T1) and 15% (T2) salt solutions, and one untreated control were maintained. The smoking was conducted at 70-75°C in an improved traditional smoking kiln. The products were then sealed in polybags and stored separately at ambient and refrigeration temperatures. The sensory quality, proximate composition, salt content, total volatile base nitrogen (TVB-N) values, and viable bacterial counts were determined. The products stored at ambient temperature were rejected on day 5, 7 and 9; and those kept at refrigeration temperature, on day 28, 35, and 42, respectively for control, T1, and T2. Significant differences in proximate compositions were observed between products of different treatments, storage conditions, and storage periods. The TVB-N values were increased rapidly in control followed by the T1 samples, compared to T2 samples. Viable bacterial counts of the smoked products were gradually increased with the increasing storage periods. Considering all the assessed parameters, the T2 products were better in quality with longer shelf-life than those of control and T1. As consumers' preference towards new fishery products has been changing, smoked products from pangasius catfish will be preferred for their taste, less bones, and higher shelf-life.