The purpose of this research was to compare the physicochemical and sensory parameters of hamburgers made with bovine and bubaline meats, aiming to find alternatives to increase the consumption of buffalo meat. The physicochemical analyses included the proximate composition (protein, moisture, fat and ash), pH value, objective colour (L*, a* and b*), shear force, cooking loss and shrinkage. The sensory acceptance was accessed using an acceptance test with a nine-point hedonic scale for the following attributes: appearance, texture, juiciness, flavour and overall quality. Regarding the proximate composition, both formulations presented similar values for moisture, ash, protein and lipids (approximately 65%, 1%, 17% and 13%, respectively). No differences were found for the pH values (5.49-5.50), shear force (0.62-0.86kgf), cooking loss (23.04-29.4%) or shrinkage (16.4-20.29%) (p>0.05). The colour analyses did not differ (p>0.05) between the samples, with mean values of around 8, 4 and 10 for the parameters of L*, a*, and b*, respectively. Concerning the sensory analysis, a statistical difference (p<0.05) was only found for the attribute of juiciness, where the bovine hamburgers (7.63) were superior to the bubaline ones (7.17). For the other attributes, no statistical differences (p>0.05) were found by the consumers, who awarded scores of 7 (like moderately) and 8 (like very much). It was concluded that, in comparison with hamburgers made from beef meat, hamburgers made from buffalo meat showed similar technological parameters and sensory acceptance, representing a good alternative to increase the consumption of this meat.
Buffalo; Meat product; Composition; Sensory acceptance