Microbial and physico-chemical changes during the ripening of dry fermented sausages superficially inoculated with or having added an intracellular cell-free extract of Penicillium aurantiogriseum

The effect of inoculation of the "salchichon" (dry fermented sausage) surfa ce with an atoxygenic, proteolytic and lipolytic strain of Penicillium aura ntiogriseum and/or the addition of an intracellular cell-free-extract (ICFE ) of the same mould on the ripening process was studied. Four batches of sa lchichon were manufactured: control, superficially inoculated, added with t he intracellular cell free extract and combination of both treatments. Supe rficial mould modified Micrococcaceae counts, pH, free amino acids, lipid f ractions, TEARS and some organic acids. The ICFE degraded free amino acids, producing a rise in ammonia. Both treatments combined accelerate the prote olysis and lipolysis of the sausages and also the further amino acid degrad ation, (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.