Summary:
The production of heavy-salted cod (Bacalao) has changed from being a single-step process (kench) salting to a multistep procedure varying between producers and countries. Presalting by injection, brining, or pickling is increasingly applied prior to pile (dry) salting. This article describes the effects of different presalting methods (injection and brining, brining only, and pickling) on yield and chemical composition of salted cod fillets, in comparison to a single-kench salting step. The procedures used influenced the weight yields and chemical composition of the products. Injection was significantly different from other methods in increasing weight yields throughout brining, dry salting, and rehydration. The yield of nitrogenous compounds tended to be lower for injected and brine-salted fillets, mainly due to higher losses of nonprotein nitrogen.