Exercise

What is basis of preservation by salting?
When salt introduced into the flesh in sufficient quantity, it delays the activity of bacteria or even inactivates them and reduces enzymatic action by reducing the water activity. Loss of water due to salting and reduced water activity limits bacterial growth and enzyme activity, thus preserving the fish. The high salt content prevents the growth of normal spoilage microflora in the fish; but halophiles, which can survive 12-15% of salt, will survive.


How salting takes place (Theory of salting)?
During salting osmotic transfer of water out of the fish and salt into the fish takes places, which effect fish preservation. It is based on different factors like diffusion and biochemical changes in various constituents of the fish. Movement of salt molecules from the brine into the fish takes place through a layer of salt solution covering the fish but having a salt concentration below that of the brine. This layer is formed because the water diffuses out at a faster rate during the initial stages from the fish than the salt solutes, which enters the fish. As the period proceeds the thickness of this covering layer diminishes as its salt content grows. At this point, diffusion of water from the fish ceases and the salt concentration in the layer equals to that of the salt concentration in the in the brine solution. Penetration ends when the salt concentration of the fish equals that of the surrounding medium.

What are the factors related to salt to be considered before using for salting?

  • Physical properties
  • Chemical impurities
  • Microbiological contamination

What is the principle of preservation by drying?
The moisture content and water activity is reduced and hence microorganisms cannot grow and multiply to spoil the fish. It can be seen that microbiological growth is completely arrested below a water activity level of 0.6 whereas certain other reactions that cause food spoilage continue. Lipid oxidation in fact increases at very low water activity.To understand the concept of preservation by drying we should know about the existence of different forms of water and the concept of water activity.

In what are all the forms the water exists in fish muscle?
Three layers of water exist in food.
• An adsorption layer
• A diffusion layer
• A free layer
Adsorption layer
• Water surround the surface of a colloidal particle
• Water at the adsorption layer is tightly bound to the particle and is called bound water
• It does not take part in any chemical reaction
Diffusion layer
• Less tightly bound to the adsorption layer and the further it is away from it
• More it behaves like free water
Free water
• It has all the properties of ordinary water
• It support the growth of microorganisms
• Take part in chemical reactions
• This form of water is important in the drying process

What is smoking of fish?
Smoking of fish refers to subjecting the fish to the smoke generated using various materials such as wood, coconut husk etc.

What is cold smoking?
Carrying out the smoking process at a temperature upto 30oC is called cold smoking, in which cooking of the flesh does not occur. Smoking effect is mainly due to the chemicals killing off the surface bacteria as reduction in water is not significant.
Cold smoked products should be cooked before consumption
Cold smoking takes 2-4 hrs when using a mechanical smoking kiln

What is hot smoking?
Carrying out the smoking process in which the fish is exposed to increasing temperatures up to at least 70oC is called hot smoking. It is having following effects

  • The fish will be cooked
  • Enzymes will be destroyed and chemical spoilage will be reduced
  • Surface bacteria will be killed
How hot smoking is carried out?
In a mechanical kiln, hot smoking is carried out in three stages.

  • A preliminary drying period at about 30°C. During this time the skin is toughened to prevent breakage occurring in the remainder of the process.
  • A smoking and partial cooking period at 50°C
  • A final cooking period at 80°C
The total time could be up to 3 hours. The actual times of each stage will depend upon:

  • The species
  • The size and thickness
  • The fat content of the product
  • The loading of the kiln
  • The colour and taste requirements

How smoking exerts preservative action?
Spoilage of fish can be reduced by reducing some of the important substances like water content, enzyme content and fat content.
The smoking process is effective in reducing the water by evaporation.
This occurs due to:

  • The movement of the gases in the smoke over the surface of the fish
  • Raising the temperature of the fish
The chemical components such as phenols and formaldehyde exist in the form of vapor in the smoke exert antioxidant and antibacterial activity. In addition the smoking process results in the penetration of the chemicals into the fish and loss of water from the flesh. A layer is formed which reduces the effect of oxygen that enters the fish from the surrounding air. Therefore the rancidity of the fat is reduced. This layer is called “barrier layer”.