Physicochemical, functional and microbiological quality of buffalo liver

Buffalo liver is an important edible meat byproduct. However, in developing countries including India, it has a low commercial value and is underutilized. The present investigation was conducted to provide basic information on physicochemical, functional and microbiological quality of buffalo liver. Proximate composition was: moisture – 71.92%, protein – 18.44%, fat – 5.60%, carbohydrate – 2.72%, total ash – 1.32% and total energy – 135 kcal. Mineral concentrations (mg%) in liver were: Na – 60.04, K – 274, Ca – 5.60, Mg – 6.20, Fe – 20.86 and Cu – 5.60. Mean glycogen (mg/g), total liver pigments (mg/g) and cholesterol (mg%) were 7.07,8.49 and 283.88, respectively. The mean pH values of buffalo liver was 6.42, WHC – 38 ml per 100 g and cooking yield was 73.15%. Protein extractability studies indicated that liver contains higher amounts of water-soluble proteins (20–40%) than salt soluble proteins (7–15%) and presence of high molecular weight proteins in salt soluble protein fractions. The average microbial counts (log10 cfu/g) for different organisms were APC – 6.10; psychrotrophs – 4.30; enterobacteriaceae counts – 4.97; staphylococcal counts 2.50 and total coliforms – 2.82.