The Effects of Different Methods of Salting on the Quality of Salted Fish

Abstract

Samples of fresh Tilapia (Tilapia species) and Redfish (Sparidae species) were salted using the pickle and kench curing methods. The salted fish were then dried using solar and air-drying methods. Standard methods were used to determine the effects of processing and dryinq methods on the chemical composition of the processed fish. With the uptake of salt by the fiah, the ash content increased significantly during processing, with resultant decreases in the fat, protein and moisture contents. Fat decrease was alao partly attributed to dripping of liquified fat during drying as well as chemical oxidation of the fat. Protein losses were also partly due to proteolysis of the protein as well as denaturation. The extent of the differences in moisture, fat and protein between the pickled and kenched samples were not significant except for ash and salt contents. Sensory evaluation using the rank method and analyaed by Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) showed that the kench cured and airdried samples are more acceptable, whiles pickle cured and solar dried samples are least acceptable with respect to texture, odour and appearance. The salted dried Tilapia samples were also found to have a longer shelf-life than the similarly treated Redfish samples.