Abstract Fish meats comprise an important part of diets; however, their rich nutrient composition and various sources mean these products can be spoiled quickly. The present study assessed the chemical and microbiological quality of imported chilled, frozen, and locally cultured fish in Saudi Arabian markets. Physiochemical, heavy metal, and microbial analysis were performed for 50 samples of fish from three sources. The results indicated that locally cultured fish were of better quality than imported fish. All of the locally cultured fish samples were under the limit of total volatile basic nitrogen TVB-N (30 mg/100 g) for fish, while 22.73% and 7.16% of frozen imported and chilled imported fish respectively were over TVB-N limit. Furthermore, chemical and microbial contamination in some fish samples exceeded the recommended permissible levels. We conclude that there was poor sanitation practice and unsuitable conditions during the production and handling processes of fish.

Abstract Fish and fish products of the most available protein sources for human beings. Indian mackerel is the most available and economic fish sold in markets in different countries and is included in many local dishes. Indian mackerel are characterized by dark muscles because of the high contents of myoglobin and lipids. This study aims to investigate the chemical composition, saturated and unsaturated fatty acid contents, and fatty acid fractions in Indian mackerel muscle. Indian mackerel (R. kanagurta) were purchased from the central fish market in Jizan, which is caught from the port of Jizan, Saudi Arabia. The samples were analyzed to estimate the proximate chemical composition, Lipid Fractions, and Fatty acid analyses from Indian mackerel. In this study, revealed that moisture, protein, and fat are the main constituents of Indian mackerel. The Indian mackerel contained high and comparable levels of saturated fatty acids and unsaturated fatty acids, and the different samples exhibited somewhat similar fatty acid contents. Among unsaturated fatty acids, the content of polyunsaturated fatty acids was higher than that of monounsaturated fatty acids, and those with the highest levels in Indian mackerel were palmitoleic, palmitic, myristic, oleic, 15-tetracosenoic, linolenic, and stearic acids in addition to docosanoic, eicosanoic, 5,8,11,14,17-eicosapentanoic, and 11-eicosenoic pentadecanoic acids. We conclude Indian mackerel is a rich source of protein and lipids. Polyunsaturated fatty acids are the main constituents of lipids, which exert positive effects on the body by providing the main nutrients and preventing disease in the consumer.

Abstract The current study investigates the effect of replacing sugar with different concentrations (0, 25, 50, 75, and 100%) of date powder (DP) on the physicochemical and sensory quality attributes of sponge cake. The results showed that DP is rich source of carbohydrate (78.20 ± 0.53%), moisture (7.80 ± 0.20%), fiber (7.73 ± 0.20%) followed by protein (2.73 ± 0.12%), ash (2.54 ± 0.00%), fat (0.50 ± 0.01%), potassium (24.96 ± 1.58 μg/g), phosphorus (3.12 ± 0.15 μg/g), calcium (2.61 ± 0.00 μg/g), iron (0.9 ± 0.00 μg/g), and vitamin A (1.27 ± 0.05 μg/g). Incorporation of different concentrations of DP concurrently (P ≤ 0.05) increased the weight, protein, fat, ash, fiber, moisture, minerals, and vitamin A and reduced the sponge cake's volume, specific weight, and carbohydrates contents. There are no significant differences between control and DP-containing cake in some sensory attributes. Overall, incorporating DP in sponge cake improved the nutritional and health quality attributes of the products without a major effect on its sensory attributes.