Sorption Isotherm and Quality Assessment of Chicken Jerky

Abstract

This study investigated the sorption isotherm, proximate composition, lipid oxidation, and sensory evaluation of chicken jerky. The moisture adsorption behavior was analyzed using a gravimetric method while proximate analysis was performed according to official methods. Lipid oxidation was measured by thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) assay while sensory evaluation was conducted with trained panelists based on appearance, taste, odor, texture, and overall acceptability. Results showed that equilibrium moisture content increased as water activity increased from 0.043 to 0.750 but remained relatively constant at 0.843 to 0.973 aw. Proximate analysis revealed that the protein content of chicken jerky was high (76.13) while a low-fat content (1.72%) was obtained in this study. Sensory evaluation indicated that overall acceptability was highly dependent on texture followed by aroma and flavour. Based on these results it can be concluded that factors such as formulation, processing method, ingredient quality and raw meat quality greatly influence the physicochemical properties of chicken jerky which ultimately affects consumer acceptance. KEYWORDS: Aroma, Humidity, Salt,Shelf-life, Snack, Storage