Microbial inactivation and quality impact assessment of red pepper paste treated by high pressure processing

• Published in: Heliyon 2022-12, Vol.8 (12), p.e12441-e12441, Article e12441
• Main Authors: Woldemariam, Henock Woldemichael, Emire, Shimelis Admassu, Teshome, Paulos Getachew, Töpfl, Stefan, Aganovic, Kemal
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: High pressure processing; Inactivation; Microorganisms; Modeling; Optimization; Red pepper paste
• ISSN: 2405-8440; 2405-8440
• DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e12441

The study aimed to investigate inactivation of naturally occurring microorganisms and quality of red pepper paste treated by high pressure processing (HPP). Central composite rotatable design was employed to determine the impacts of pressure (100–600 MPa) and holding time (30–600 s). HPP at 527 MPa for 517 s reduced aerobic mesophilic bacteria count by 4.5 log CFU/g. Yeasts and molds counts were reduced to 1 log CFU/g at 600 MPa for 315 s. Total phenols, carotenoids and antioxidants activity ranged from 0.28 to 0.33 g GAE/100 g, 96.0–98.4 mg βc/100 g and 8.70–8.95 μmol TE/g, respectively. Increase (2.5–6.7%) in these variables was observed with increasing pressure and holding time. Total color difference (ΔE∗) values (0.2–2.8) were within the ranges of ‘imperceptible’ to ‘noticeable’. Experimental results were fitted satisfactorily into quadratic model with higher R2 values (0.8619–0.9863). Optimization process suggested treatment of red pepper paste at 536 MPa for 125 s for maximum desirability (0.622). Validation experiments confirmed comparable percentage of relative errors. Overall, this technique could be considered as an efficient treatment for the inactivation of microorganisms that naturally occur in red pepper paste with minimal changes in its characteristics. [Display omitted] •Effectiveness of HPP depended on the intensity of pressure and holding time.•Treatment at 527 MPa for 517 s reduced total plate count by 4.5 log CFU/g.•Yeasts and molds counts were reduced to 1 log CFU/g at 600 MPa for 315 s.•Slight increase in total phenols, carotenoid and antioxidant activity was observed.•Optimization process suggested treatment of red pepper paste at 536 MPa for 125 s. High pressure processing; Inactivation; Microorganisms; Modeling; Optimization; Red pepper paste.