The effects of ripening period, nitrite level and heat treatment on biogenic amine formation of “sucuk” – A Turkish dry fermented sausage

The effects of ripening period (1–13 days), nitrite level (45–195 ppm) and heat treatment (30–90 °C) on biogenic amine formation of sucuk were investigated using the central composite rotatable design of response surface methodology.Increasing the ripening period of sucuk caused significant increases in putrescine, cadaverine, tyramine, histamine, spermidine and spermine levels (P < 0.01). During the ripening period, the biogenic amines putrescine and tyramine increased the most. Increased nitrite levels caused decreases in cadaverine and tyramine. However, the effect of heat treatment on the biogenic amines was not significant (P > 0.05).