Effect of the use of curing salts and of a starter culture on the sensory and microbiological characteristics of homemade salamis

Homemade salamis may have their food safety guaranteed by means of the addition of curing salt and starter cultures, without loosing their traditional manufacturing recipes brought to Brazil by the Italian immigration in the early 20th century. In this work, the influence of curing salt and of a starter culture, composed of Lactobacillus and Staphylococcus, over the sensory and microbiological characteristics of Italian type salamis, containing 3% lactose and 0.5% saccharose, was evaluated. The starter culture and the curing salt inhibited the development of Staphylococcus aureus and of coliforms, and the salamis added with curing salt presented better color attributes. Os salames produzidos artesanalmente podem ter sua segurança alimentar garantida pela adição de sal de cura e de culturas iniciadoras sem perda das receitas tradicionais trazidas pela imigração italiana do início do século vinte. Neste trabalho, a partir da produção de salames com 3% de lactose e 0,5% de sacarose, avaliou-se a influência do sal de cura e da cultura iniciadora, composta de Lactobacillus e Staphylococcus, sobre as características sensoriais e microbiológicas dos salames. A cultura iniciadora e o sal de cura inibiram o crescimento de Staphylococcus aureus e de coliformes totais, sendo que os salames adicionados de sal de cura apresentaram uma melhor coloração.