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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Counterbalancing salt reduction with aromas and consequences on sensory acceptability: A study with real cheese

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Introduction and objective: Unbalanced diet with an overconsumption of salt contributes to the development of cardiovascular disease. Several strategies are currently investigated to design low-salt food while maintaining taste and consumer liking. The strategy relying on cross-modal sensory compensation is being tested within the framework of the EU-TeRiFiQ research project. In this context, this study had for aim to examine whether selected aromas could help to maintain salt and fat perception in low-salt real cheese. Methods: Two commercial cheeses, low-salt cheese (LSC) and regular-salt cheese (RSC), were reprocessed by grinding and addition of a sardine aroma associated to salty taste (LSC sardine), a butter aroma associated to fat perception (LSC butter), a blended aroma (sardine + butter, LSC blended) and non-flavoured (LSC-u and RSC-u). A total of 9 samples, which include graded and non-graded LSC and RSC were prepared. Fifty nine consumers were asked to rate taste, texture, and aroma attributes for each sample in two conditions: with and without noseclip; in the noseclip condition, participants were not able to perceive the aroma. Results: The samples were characterized by means of rheological measurements. The results indicated only a low impact of aroma addition on products’ structure (p=0.045), which allowed for the direct comparison of flavored and unflavored samples on the sensory attributes. Cheese grading affected sensory texture and taste of LSC and RSC (p<0.0001). The comparison of flavored and unflavored graded cheeses revealed a significant saltiness enhancement induced by the added aroma perception (p<0.0001). In contrast, no significant effect of aroma addition could be observed on fat perception. Conclusion: In summary, these results demonstrated that odor induced saltiness enhancement can occur in real low-salt food product and that cross-modal sensory compensation can be an efficient strategy to maintain salty taste, and likely acceptability, of low-salt food.