Effect of Replacement Levels of Wheat Flour on the Physicochemical and Sensory Properties of Smoke- Dried Sausage

In the olden days, there was no refrigeration for meat preservation and sausage making was a way to solve this problem. Sausage making evolved as an effort to economize and preserve meat which could not be consumed immediately after slaughter. This study evaluated the effect of replacement levels of wheat flour on the physicochemical characteristics and sensory qualities of smoke-dried sausage. Beef, wheat flour, sodium chloride, seasonings (Table 1) were bought, pre-processing operations were carried out. Sausage was processed by adding wheat flour, seasonings, salt to minced meat at different replacement levels (5%, 10% and 15%) with 0% as control and later smoke-dried. Sensory evaluation and physicochemical properties were determined. Data generated were analyzed. The results from sensory evaluation showed that Product A had the highest response (5.00) to sausage colour. Product A (5.00), B (5.00) and C (4.90) had the highest response for product juiciness. Product A (5.00) and product B (5.00) had better response to taste. For overall acceptability, Product A (5.00) was not different from other products. The addition of wheat flour resulted in higher and greater elasticity and increased acceptability due to higher scores for texture and colour. The protein content showed that Product D (56.33%) had the lowest value, followed by Product B (58.23%), next was Product C (59.57%), and the highest was observed in Product A (60.42%). Product C had the highest value for potassium and phosphorus (122.0 mg/100g and 13.40 mg/100g). Product B and C had the same value (6.17) for pH, next was product A (6.13), the least pH was observed in Product D (6.07). Sausage manufacture is a means of adding value to off-cuts and thereby increasing the utilization of meat. The incorporation of 10% wheat flour to sausage is highly nutritive with better sensory qualities and better economic value.