Question

Why do we use salt in preservation of fish and meat?
A. Salt checks the growth of algae
B. It makes the pickle tasty
C. It checks the growth of bacteria
D. Both A and B

Answer 1

Hint: Fishes consist of pathogenic bacteria contaminating from water and soil, these are bacillus, clostridium, Escherichia, serratia, vibrio. The meat is rotting by the flora including alcaligenes, liquefaciens, bacillus subtilis, clostridium perfringens, lactobacillus sp., micrococcus varians.

Complete Answer:
- Salt prevents the growth of microorganisms by drawing water out of microbial cells through osmosis. Accumulation of salt up to is required to kill most of the unused bacteria. Salt curing is one of the oldest methods of preserving food.
- Salt is used to preserve amla, mangoes, tamarind etc. salt reduces water content commonly. Salts are hygroscopic in nature, salts make the environment too dry and unsuitable for microbial growth.
- Foods are dynamic systems in which changes occur in the presence of hydrogen, atmosphere, nutrient composition and microflora over time. Many fishes contain trimethylamine oxide (TMAO).
- Seafood SSO produces ammonia, biogenic amines, organic acid and sulfur compounds from amino acids, hypoxanthine from ATP degradation products and acetate from lactate.

Thus, the option (C) is correct.

Note: Sugar also used to cure fishes and meat. Salmon fish is preserved by sugar. Smoking process is also used to preserve the meat and fishes, it seals the outer layer part of food being cured and makes it difficult to enter bacteria. When compared to other food, seafood is unique as a substrate for microorganism’s growth.