Processing stage-guided effects of spices on the formation and accumulation of heterocyclic amines in smoked and cooked sausages

Heterocyclic amines (HAs) could be generated though sausage processing. The results showed that garlic, black pepper, chili inhibited the formation of HAs (584.29 ng/g, 613.11 ng/g, 677.23 ng/g) whereas ginger and Sichuan pepper intensified (965.66 ng/g, 916.59 ng/g) compare with control sausage 863.86 ng/g. Furthermore, the study showed that garlic, black pepper, chilli all inhibited the formation of total HAs at stage of raw, drying, baking and steaming and had different inhibitory effect at every stage. Black pepper had the best inhibitory effect across four stages and inhibition rate reached 65%, 69%, 66%, 84% after each stage. Chilli was the only one had inhibitory effect on both free and protein-bound HAs at every stage and inhibition rate about free and protein-bound HAs reached 38% and 76% in finished sausage. Adding certain spices properly during processing would be helpful to obtain fewer HAs in sausage.