Quality assessment of unfermented sausage by partial replacement of sodium nitrite with ethanolic extracts of Rosmarinus officinalis and Berberis vulgaris

In this research, nitrite was partially replaced with different concentrations of Berberis vulgaris and Rosmarinus officinalis (0, 30, 60, 90 mg/kg) extracts in the unfermented sausage. Samples were kept at refrigerator temperature and physicochemical and organoleptic evaluations of treatments were performed. The findings showed an increase in moisture and ash content and a decrease in fat and protein content, and IC50 by increasing the storage time. The highest level of antioxidant activity was reported for treatment with 90 mg/kg R. officinalis extract. As for sensory properties, 60 mg/kg treatment showed the highest sensory score after the control sample; however, 30 mg/kg treatment had the highest score in terms of consistency after the control sample. It can be concluded that 60 mg/kg R. officinalis extract has a better potential to improve the qualitative characteristics of unfermented sausage and it can be a proper substitute for decreasing the nitrite in sausage formulations.