Noor Zainah, A.*, Wan Nur Zahidah, W. Z., Nurhazwani, S., Khairol Nadia, A. H., Hairiyah, M., Mohd Fakhri, H., Norhida Arnieza, M. and Norizah, M. A.
Abstract
This study examined the physicochemical, microbiological and sensory properties of kawah-style meat curry, a traditional dish from Malaysia’s Eastern Coastal region, prepared using the retort process. Portions of kawah-style meat curry (180 g, with 60 g of partially cooked meat and 120 g of curry gravy) were packed in two types of retort pouches: RCPP/ Nylon/Al/PET (Al) and Nylon/RCPP (T). These pouches underwent processing in a retort machine at 121 °C with F0 values of 8, 10 and 12. Subsequent analysis encompassed physicochemical, microbiological and sensory evaluations. The results showed that increasing F0 values reduced the total soluble solids (TSS) and pH values of the curry gravy in both pouch types, while the Al pouch maintained better colour (L*, a* and b*) values. Notably, the absence of harmful bacteria including aerobic and anaerobic species, yeast, mould, coliforms (Escherichia coli) and Salmonella spp. affirmed the safety of the retorted samples for consumption. Sensory evaluation indicated high acceptability, with F0 8 achieving the highest overall scores (5.95 for Al and 5.89 for T), although the differences were not statistically significant. F0 8 was selected for further storage studies due to its superior acceptability and safety.
Keywords: kawah-style meat curry, retort pouches, quality evaluation, sensory acceptance
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