Relating sensory and instrumental texture analyses of Atlantic salmon

Sensory-evaluated hardness of smoked Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) was correlated with various response variables from instrumental texture analysis of raw or smoked cutlets (25 mm thick) using 4 different probes: 12.5- and 23- mm-dia cylinders, a Warner-Bratzler blade, and a 25.4-mm-dia sphere. Sensory hardness correlated significantly with analysis using all mechanical methods, but it was most accurately predicted by the 12.5-mm-dia cylinder in raw salmon (force and area at 90% compression; r = 0.70, P < 0.0001), and by the 23-mm-dia cylinder in smoked salmon (force at 90% compression and the area from origo to the 1st significant break; r = 0.63 to 0.64, P < 0.0001).