Manufacture of spent hen ayami and its utilisation in meatloaf and fresh sausage

1. Spent hens were slaughtered, hand deboned and then further processed into a surimi-like material, ayami, which was used to manufacture meatloaf and fresh sausage as value-added products. 2. Yields of deboned muscle and of ayami (% of deboned muscle) were 34.4 to 43.7% and 63.6%, respectively. 3. The ayami composition was: moisture 78.3%, ash 0.28%, fat 3.7%, protein 15.3% and carbohydrate 2.4%. Its pH value ranged from 5.65 to 6.10, and the water-holding capacity from 35.6 to 37.8. 4. Three formulations of meatloaf were prepared with 0, 7.5 and 15% chicken fat and with a blend of herbs and spices. The most acceptable of the three was used for the manufacture of meatloaf and fresh sausage. 5. Microbial testing was conducted on freshly prepared formulation of the meatloaf (15% fat) and sausage, and on frozen stored samples (-18 degrees C, 10 d). All had acceptable microbial quality. 6. Sensory analysis showed that the 15% fat formulation of the meatloaf was the most liked and the fresh sausage was consumer acceptable.