Effects of Sous Vide Cooking on Physicochemical, Structural, and Microbiological Characteristics of Cuttlefish, Octopus, and Squid

This study investigated the physicochemical (pH, moisture, protein, fat, ash, TBA), color (L*, a*, b*), and textural properties (TPA and extended craft knife), mineral content, fatty acid composition, and microbiological properties of raw and sous vide (SV) cooked cuttlefish (at 95°C for 13 min), octopus (at 95°C for 30 min), and squid (at 95°C for 10 min). The pH, protein, and L* values of these samples increased with the cooking. No significant alterations in lipid oxidation were determined in the samples. A gradual decrease in fatty acid with SV cooking was observed. Sulfur was found as the major mineral content in these cephalopods, followed by potassium, sodium, and phosphorus. Thermal treatment influenced the textural properties of the SV cooked samples, in which hardness, gumminess, chewiness, and resilience lower than raw samples was observed. The firmness values of the samples also decreased with the SV cooking. The treatment had significant positive effects on the total mesophilic aerobic bacteria, total coliform, Escherichia coli, and Staphylococcus aureus counts. Vibrio parahaemolyticus (<2 log cfu/g) was not found in the raw and cooked samples. As a result, SV was found to be an effective cooking method for preparing cuttlefish, octopus, and squid.