TITLE:
Sous-Vide Technology in Muscle Foods: Balancing Food Safety and Textural Quality
AUTHORS:
Paula Kralj-Vrsalović, Ema Milišić
KEYWORDS:
Sous-Vide, Food Safety, Collagen Gelatinization, Sensory Evaluation
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Access Library Journal,
Vol.13 No.7,
July
27,
2026
ABSTRACT: Sous-vide cooking, defined as thermal processing of vacuum-sealed ingredients at highly controlled temperatures has transitioned from industrial preservation to haute cuisine. This review examines the dual imperatives of the technique: maximizing sensory and textural quality while ensuring absolute microbiological safety under Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) systems. Physically, vacuum packaging minimizes mass loss, prevents the degradation of thermolabile nutrients and inhibits lipid oxidation. Biochemically, low-temperature long-time (LTLT) cooking enables selective muscle protein denaturation, utilizing endogenous lysosomal cathepsins B and L to solubilize tough collagen into gelatin without over-coagulating actin fibers. Simultaneously, microbiological safety is achieved by operating above the lower safety threshold of 54˚C to pasteurize vegetative pathogens like Salmonella spp. and Listeria monocytogenes, combined with strict rapid-chilling and refrigerated storage protocols below 3˚C to control spore-forming anaerobes. Closed vacuum environment and lower temperatures prevent the loss of aroma compounds, limit lipid oxidation, and preserve the water-holding capacity of the muscle. This results in a uniform distribution of color and moisture throughout the entire product.