Quality and shelf life of fresh chicken breasts subjected to crust freezing with and without skin

The effect of crust freezing (20m-85C) on raw chicken breast quality, with or without skduring aerobic, refrigerated storage for up to 18 days was assessed using the International Commission on Illumination color parameters L*, a* and b*; tenderness; total aerobic (aerobic plate counts [APC]) and yeasts/molds counts. Skin on had significantly higher L* values compared with skinless breasts (average 75 versus 55), whereas a* and b* remained relatively constant regardless of the presence or absence of skfreezing or time. For a* and b*, values oscillated between -2.10-0.78 and 1.38-3.77, respectively. Shear energy varied for skinless samples but tended to remain constant throughout time for skin-on breasts. APC increased over time, exceeding 8.0logcfu/mL of rinse, between 6 and 12 days of storage. Crust freezing did not affect color or tenderness of raw chicken breasts, with or without skbut also did not extend microbiological shelf life