Assessment of technological attributes of autochthonous starter cultures in Turkish dry fermented sausage (sucuk)

Summary The study aims to evaluate the technological properties of autochthonous strains ( Lactobacillus sakei S15, Lactobacillus plantarum S24, L . plantarum S91, Pediococcus pentosaceus S128b and Staphylococcus carnosus G109) in Turkish dry fermented sausage (sucuk). After 24 h of fermentaPtion, all lactic acid bacteria strains reduced the pH to below 5.0, while the pH in the control group was above 5.3. The number of lactic acid bacteria strains reached 10 8 –10 9 cfu g −1 during fermentation. Staphylococcus carnosus G109 remained at the inoculation level of 10 6 cfu g −1 during ripening. Lactobacillus sakei S15 as mono‐culture showed higher TBARS values compared to other strains. The control group had the lowest L* value and autochthonous strains caused no significant difference for a* value. According to principal component analysis results, most volatile compounds were positively correlated with the group containing only L. sakei S15.