Effects of dry brining, liquid smoking and high-pressure treatment on the physical properties of aquacultured King salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) during refrigerated storage

BACKGROUND Aquacultured King salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) pieces were dry brined with a salt/brown sugar mix, dipped in liquid smoke for 3 min, vacuum packed, high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) treated at 600 or 200 MPa for 5 min and stored at 4 °C for up to 40 days. RESULTS The surface redness (average a*) of the samples increased after dry brining, then decreased after liquid smoke treatment. HHP did not change the outside color of liquid‐smoked samples. However, the inside color changed depending on pressure. HHP‐treated control samples without dry brining and liquid smoking changed to a pale pink color. HHP at 600 MPa resulted in a significant increase in hardness. Compared with fresh samples, dry‐brined samples had reduced water activity, while samples dipped in liquid smoke had lower pH values. CONCLUSION Dry brining and liquid smoking protect the outside color of salmon against changes caused by HHP. The increase in hardness may counteract the softening of the smoked salmon tissue over time. © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry