Efficacy of aniseed essential oil as natural preservative in meat emulsion at refrigeration temperature

1. This experiment examined the antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of aniseed oil (AO) in meat emulsions. Spices are integral part of emulsion-based products imparting desirable flavours. In the search for chemical-free preservatives, these spices hold promising potential for extending the shelf-life of meat emulsions.2. Three different levels of aniseed essential oil viz. AO1 (0.25%), AO2 (0.5%), AO3 (0.75%) and control C (without aniseed essential oil) were incorporated in chicken meat emulsions. Samples were assessed for changes in physico-chemical, antioxidant activity, lipid oxidation, microbiological parameters and visual sensory scores during refrigerated storage under aerobic packaging. Samples were evaluated at a regular interval of 3 d until the appearance of incipient spoilage.3. Titratable acidity, emulsion stability and extract release volume decreased significantly, whereas pH value increased (<i>p</i> < 0.05) among all samples throughout storage. Total phenolic, 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline)-6-sulphonic and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl acid per cent inhibition increased as the level of aniseed oil incorporation increased among groups. However, this value reduced considerably (<i>p</i> < 0.05) during storage.4. Peroxide value, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, free fatty acid content and microbial quality parameters increased (<i>p</i> < 0.05) by the end of storage. Visual sensory attributes score of AO2 were rated higher than AO3, although sensory score declined (<i>p</i> < 0.05) in all groups during storage.5. The results showed that AO2 maintained better sensorial characteristics than AO3 and sustained physicochemical, antioxidant and antimicrobial activity compared to the control, AO1.