Double freezing of saithe fillets. Influence on sensory and physical attributes

Fillet samples were processed on board of a research vessel from saithe (Pollachius virens) in different states of rigor mortis. In addition, headed and gutted fish in different states of rigor were frozen and, after ten days of frozen storage, the fish were thawed, processed into fillets and refrozen. During subsequent frozen storage at -24 degrees C several quality attributes were tested using sensory (Quantitative Descriptive Analysis schemes for flavour and texture) and physical (Texture Profile Analysis, penetration force, colour measurement) methods. The measurements indicated differences in the quality attributes depending on refreezing and rigor states. However, it was not possible to clearly distinguish between single and double frozen samples. Therefore, it can be stated that, at least when using saithe as raw material for processing battered and breaded portions, the different methods of preparing the fillet blocks will not significantly affect the quality of the final products.