Effect of the aromatisation with summer savory (Satureja hortensis L.) essential oil on the oxidative and microbial stabilities of liquid whole eggs during storage

The Algerian essential oil (EO) extracted by hydro-distillation from Satureja hortensis L. (S. hortensis) was characterised by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). S. hortensis (summer savory) was chemotype carvacrol (54.2%) and gamma-terpinene (21.1%). In its second part, the present study was conducted to evaluate in vitro, antioxidant activity of savory EO using the 2,2-di-phenyl-1-picrilhydrazyl (DPPH center dot) free radical scavenging assay. Finally, the EO was screened for biological activities in liquid whole eggs (LWE). The ability of savory EO to scavenge the free radical (DPPH center dot) was very high, exceeding 80%. The long-term oxidative and microbial stability of LWE was positively influenced by EO treatments, increasing the shelf life to more than eight (> 8) days under refrigeration. Therefore, the results obtained in this work confirm savory EO treatment as a promising technology to extend the commercial shelf life of liquid egg products, as well as to maintain the quality of LWE as ingredient in innovative food products.