Quality Characteristics of Fibre-enriched Chicken Sausages Incorporated with Cooked Plantain

Incorporation of dietary fibre into chicken sausages may improve their nutritional composition and processing characteristics while influencing sensory acceptability. Although banana-derived ingredients have been investigated in various meat products, limited information is available on the effects of cooked shredded unripe plantain, particularly with peel, on the physicochemical, proximate and sensory characteristics of chicken sausages. This study evaluated the effects of cooked shredded unripe plantain, incorporated with and without peel, on the quality characteristics of chicken sausages. Three formulations were prepared: a control without plantain (C), a formulation containing 5% cooked shredded unripe plantain without peel (T1) and a formulation containing 5% cooked shredded unripe plantain with peel (T2). In the plantain formulations, an equivalent proportion of chicken meat was replaced, while other ingredients remained unchanged. Data from six trials were analysed for physicochemical characteristics, proximate composition and sensory attributes. Relative to the control, plantain incorporation reduced emulsion and product pH and increased emulsion stability, cooking yield, moisture retention and fat retention. Cooking yield was 94.46% in C, 95.92% in T1 and 96.48% in T2. Crude fibre content increased from 0.48% in C to 4.42% in T1 and 4.56% in T2. Moisture and ash contents also increased, whereas protein and fat contents decreased. Flavour, juiciness, texture and overall acceptability scores were lower in both plantain formulations than in the control, while tenderness did not differ significantly. Overall acceptability scores were 8.34, 7.96 and 7.92 for C, T1 and T2, respectively, with no significant difference between T1 and T2. These findings indicate that adding 5% cooked unripe plantain improved processing characteristics and crude fibre content but was associated with some reductions in sensory scores. Retaining the peel gave slightly higher processing and fibre values without a significant additional decrease in overall acceptability.