Quality Assessment of Egyptian Catfish (Clarias gariepinus) Fillet During Frozen Storage تقييم جودة فيليه سمک القراميط المصرى (Clarias gariepinus) اثناء التخزين المجمد

Biochemical assay, microbial load determination, and sensory evaluation of Egyptian Catfish fillets were examined during frozen storage at -18 oC up to 12 months. The initial chemical composition of Catfish fillet was moisture 73.01%, protein 80.96%, Crude oil 09.52%, crude ash 7.30%, and total carbohydrate 2.11%. The frozen storage process showed a significant effect on the chemical composition of studied Catfish fillets. pH and WHC values were decreased significantly whereas the TVBN and TBA values significantly increased in Catfish fillets with prolong of storage period. The microbial activities decreased during frozen storage. The total bacterial counts were 4.10, 2.11 and 2.71 (cfu×10/g) in the zero, 6 and 12 months for frozen Catfish fillets, respectively. All sensory characteristics except taste and overall acceptability were significantly decreased at the end of the storage period. This study is highly significant to fulfil the consumer issue concerning the time it takes to preserve Catfish fillets without damaging public health in domestic freezers. keywords: Egyptian Catfish, fish fillet, frozen storage, quality attributes.