Table Of ContentSalami
Practical Science and Processing Technology
Gerhard Feiner
AMSTERDAM • BOSTON • HEIDELBERG • LONDON
NEW YORK • OXFORD • PARIS • SAN DIEGO
SAN FRANCISCO • SINGAPORE • SYDNEY • TOKYO
Academic Press is an imprint of Elsevier
Academic Press is an imprint of Elsevier
125 London Wall, London EC2Y 5AS, United Kingdom
525 B Street, Suite 1800, San Diego, CA 92101-4495, United States
50 Hampshire Street, 5th Floor, Cambridge, MA 02139, United States
The Boulevard, Langford Lane, Kidlington, Oxford OX5 1GB, United Kingdom
Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage
and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Details on how to
seek permission, further information about the Publisher’s permissions policies and our
arrangements with organizations such as the Copyright Clearance Center and the Copyright
Licensing Agency, can be found at our website: www.elsevier.com/permissions.
This book and the individual contributions contained in it are protected under copyright
by the Publisher (other than as may be noted herein).
Notices
Knowledge and best practice in this field are constantly changing. As new research and
experience broaden our understanding, changes in research methods, professional
practices, or medical treatment may become necessary.
Practitioners and researchers may always rely on their own experience and knowledge
in evaluating and using any information, methods, compounds, or experiments described
herein. In using such information or methods they should be mindful of their own safety
and the safety of others, including parties for whom they have a professional responsibility.
To the fullest extent of the law, neither the Publisher nor the authors, contributors, or
editors, assume any liability for any injury and/or damage to persons or property as a
matter of products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of
any methods, products, instructions, or ideas contained in the material herein.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN: 978-0-12-809598-0
For information on all Academic Press publications
visit our website at https://www.elsevier.com/
Publisher: Nikki Levy
Acquisition Editor: Patricia Osborn
Editorial Project Manager: Jaclyn Truesdell
Production Project Manager: Caroline Johnson
Designer: Matthew Limbert
Typeset by TNQ Books and Journals
Preface
Salami, or salami-type products, have been produced for a very long time all
over the world. Salumi is the Italian word for “salted and cured meats” (which
includes salami as well as products such as prosciutto), while salami refers to
dry-cured sausages. Salame is the word for a single salami. Despite the rich
history and versatility of salami, it is virtually impossible to find a book cover-
ing the science of salami in combination with clearly outlined processing steps
in order to achieve safe and great-tasting end products. Salami, and especially
fermented and dried salami, still awakens some agree of uneasiness in people
because such products are produced from raw meat and the end product is con-
sumed while still raw. Also, microbiology plays a vital role in the production of
fermented and dried salami, which complicates matters even more.
The purpose of this book is to give clear and helpful guidelines to profes-
sionals within the meat-processing industry, such as technical, production,
operations, process improvement, quality control, and research and development
managers. Undergraduate as well as postgraduate students and academicians will
find this book an invaluable tool for their studies and lectures.
Having worked all over the world in the meat-processing industry, conducting
seminars for customers as well as lecturing at universities, I was frequently asked
about the availability of an all-in-one book about salami. There are very few
books available on the topic of salami, and most are written for hobbyists, mostly
describing recipes of products but not focusing on science and professional
processing technology. This book fills a gap because it combines a scientific and
yet still hands-on approach allowing for the safe and efficient production of all
salami-type products. Microbiology related to salami is also discussed as it plays
a vital role in the production of salami.
ix
Acknowledgments
This book summarizes both my practical and my theoretical knowledge gained
from working within the meat industry in several countries during the past 30 years.
The practical operations knowledge, including process optimization, is based on
having occupied roles as such production and factory manager in three countries,
as well as having had my own consultancy business for process optimization in
the meat and food industry. My theoretical knowledge gained over the years is the
result of both having been taught by and having worked with extremely knowl-
edgeable people during my study of the Master Butcher Diploma and especially
during my study of Meat Technology in Kulmbach (Germany). Therefore, I want
express deep gratitude to those who taught me over all those years, namely Titus
Kaibic, Dipl.-Ing. Thomas Eberle, Dr. Gerhard Hartmann, Dr. Fredi Schwaegele,
Dipl.-Ing. Hans-Georg Hechelmann, Professor Dr. Lothar Leistner, Dr. Hermann
Hecht, Dr. Wolfgang Schneider, Dr. Ulrike Fischer, Dr. Andrea Maurer, and
Dr. Peter Braun. I also want to thank all those people whom I no longer even
remember who gave me ideas and help over the years. However, the biggest
“thank you” must go to my patient wife, Tracy, and our two sons, Jack and Lewis,
for their wonderful support while I was researching, writing, and editing this book.
During the course of my studies, several books were of great help, namely:
Breuer, H. dtv-Atlas zur Chemie II: Organische Chemie und Kunststoffe, 5th
edition. Deutscher Taschen Verlag, Muenchen, 1992.
Kulmbacher Reihe, Band 2, Beitraegezur Chemie und Physik des Fleisches.
Foerderungsgesellschaft der Bundesanstalt fuer Fleischforschung, Kulmbach,
1981 (articles by K. Hofmann, K. Potthat, R. Hamm, K. Fischer, K.O. Honikel,
and L. Toth).
Kulmbacher Reihe, Band 5, Mikrobiologie und Qaulitaet von Rohwurst und
Rohschinken. Foerderungsgesellschaft der Bundesanstaltfuer Fleischforschung,
Kulmbach, 1985 (articles by W. Roedel, F.-J. Lueke, and H. Hechelmann).
Kulmbacher Reihe, Band 6, Chemisch-physikalische Merkmale der Fleischquali-
taet. Foerderungsgesellschaft der Bundesanstalt fuer Fleischforschung,
Kulmbach, 1986 (article by K.O. Honikel, H. Hecht, and K. Potthast).
Kulmbacher Reihe, Band 10, Sichere Produktebei Fleisch und Fleischerzeugnissen.
Foerderungsgesellschaft der Bundesanstalt fuer Fleischforschung, Kulmbach,
1990 (article by L. Leistner, H. Hechelmann, R. Kasprowiak, R. Geisen, F.-K.
Lueke, and L. Kroeckel).
xi
xii Acknowledgments
Mueller, G. Grundlagen der Lebensmittelmikrobiologie. Fachbuchverlag (on
behalf of Dr. Dietrich Steikopf Publishing), Leipzig, 1986.
Praendl, O., Fischer, A., Schmidhofer, T., and Sirell, H.-J. Fleisch. Eugen Ullmer,
Stuttgart, 1988.
Introduction
Humans have eaten meat products for centuries, and salami-type sausages are
the oldest form of “sausage.” Drying of meat and meat products as a form of
preservation dates back to the ancient Chinese, and countless highly valuable
vitamins, minerals, and trace products can be found in meat as well as meat
products. Despite ongoing discussions about health concerns when consuming
meat and meat products, it can be said that these types of food are still part of a
balanced and healthy diet today. There are also those, though, who opt not to eat
meat for a variety of reasons.
xiii
Disclaimer
All information in regards to practical knowledge gained by the author while
working in factories as well as theoretical knowledge gained during his s tudies
should not be used as the basis for any legal claims. Hence, all information
stated is not intended to credit, or discredit, any manufacturer of equipment or
suppliers of meat or additives and is purely based on the opinion of the author.
xv
Chapter 1
Meat and Fat
1.1 INTRODUCTION
Most countries interpret the presence of “pork meat” in their respective food
standards as meaning “muscle meat including fat and skin” rather than as lean
muscle tissue only. This fact can be confusing to the ordinary consumer as most
understand lean muscle tissue to be “meat” and do not know that fat and skin are
classified as “meat” as well. When other types of meat are described, though,
the term meat does not include fat and skin. The amount of lean meat obtained
from a carcass is around 35% in cattle, around 45% in pigs, around 38% in veal,
and around 35% in lamb. Fat is also part of a balanced human diet, and the pres-
ence of fat in meat and meat products has both technological and organoleptic
purposes. The relationship between fat consumption and weight gain, though, is
currently a topic of interest, as excessive consumption of fat may be a cause of
the increased levels of obesity worldwide.
The quality of meat and meat products is also a topic of frequent dis-
cussion. There is currently no consensus on what the term “quality” really
stands for given that “quality” is generally seen as a combination of two
major aspects. “Total quality” of meat and meat products includes, on the
one hand, characteristics that can be measured, such as microbiological sta-
tus, tenderness, color, juiciness, shelf life, pH value, pesticide levels, etc.
On the other hand, total quality also includes an aspect that is less easy to
measure: the consumer’s personal perception of the value of meat and meat
products. This perception is different for every individual human being, as
external factors such as television advertisements have an influence on this
aspect of total quality. The term “quality,” from the consumer’s point of
view, could be simply said to mean whether the consumer thinks a product
is good value for money, and this judgment will vary from person to person
and from product to product.
The study of meat technology evolves around the five major building blocks
used to make a meat product: raw materials, additives, the manufacturing tech-
nologies applied, food safety, and commercial interests, including all possible
interactions between the five. Manufacturing technology combines raw mate-
rials and additives with each other to obtain a product of the desired quality
within a certain economic framework possibly providing profit to the manufac-
turer of the product (see Fig. 1.1).
Salami. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-809598-0.00001-9
Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 3
4 PART | I Meat and Fat
Meat materials such as Additives, added in the
lean and fatty meat, fat, correct amount and
oil, skin-and fat choosing the correct
emulsions. additive in first place.
Manufacturing
technology such as
cutting, filling and
thermal processing
Desired cost of the
Desired quality of the
finished product–being
finished product also
profitable for the
ensuring food safety
producer
Finished
product
FIGURE 1.1 Overview on meat technology.
1.2 AMINO ACIDS
Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins. Even though about 190 amino
acids are known today, only 20 different amino acids are required by humans to
synthesize all necessary proteins. All of these 20 amino acids are α-amino acids
given that both functional groups, the “acid” carboxyl group (dCOOH), and
the “alkaline” amino group (dNH ), are attached to the same carbon atom, the
2
alpha (α)-carbon atom or Cα. This alpha-carbon atom is also referred to as the
“chiral center” and glycine, the simplest amino acid, is the only nonchiral amino
acid. The rest of the molecule is in most cases the primary portion of the amino
acid and determines the identity of the amino acid itself as well as whether the
amino acid is polar or nonpolar.
As stated, almost all α-amino acids are chiral, meaning that two arrange-
ments of the same molecule are nonidentical mirror images.
Chiral amino acids exist in two configurations known as l- or d-stereoisomers,
which correspond to “left-handed” (l) or “right-handed” (d) three-dimensional
shapes. d originates from the Latin word dexter and the NH group is on the
2
right hand side of the molecule, while l originates from laevus, meaning “left.”
All amino acids found in proteins are l-isomers except for glycine, the simplest
amino acid, which is not chiral. Depending on the side chains within the amino
acid, neutral, acid, or alkaline amino acids are formed (see Fig. 1.2).
Amino acids exhibit side groups, which can be made of a hydrogen atom or
other ring-structured molecules. In turn, those side groups can show different
groups such as hydroxyl groups (dOH) and, in conjunction with the carboxyl
Meat and Fat Chapter | 1 5
COOH COOH
HN C H H C NH
2 2
CH CH
3 3
L-alanine D-alanine
FIGURE 1.2 l- or d-form of the amino acid alanine.
H
R Cα COOH
NH
2
FIGURE 1.3 Typical configuration of an amino acid; R represents the “rest” of the molecule.
and amino group of the main structure of the amino acid, these affect the struc-
ture of a protein (see Fig. 1.3).
Eight of those 20 amino acids are “essential” and have to be supplied to the
human body by consuming food, containing those essential amino acids.
The body cannot synthesize those eight essential amino acids, and if they
are not provided to the human body via the intake of food, illness and death
may be the consequence. The remaining 12 amino acids can be synthesized
by the human body, as long as food consumed provides all elements needed
to synthesize those amino acids. Protein-containing food is broken down via
digestion into individual amino acids, from which the required body proteins
are synthesized.
The eight essential amino acids are:
l Isoleucine l Threonine
l Leucine l Valine
l Lysine l Tryptophane
l Methionine l Phenylalanine
All other 12 amino acids can be synthesized by the human body itself using
nitrogen, which is supplied by consuming food containing nitrogen.
l Alanine l Asparagine
l Arginine l Cysteine
l Aspartic acid l Glutamic acid
l Proline l Histidine
l Tyrosine l Glutamine
l Serine l Glycine
The nutritional value of food is determined by the presence of essential
amino acids at their lowest relative concentration. A food might contain seven
of the eight essential amino acids at a high concentration but one at only a very
low level, and it is the one present at a low level that determines the nutritional
