The effect of cooking and storage on the fatty acid profile of chicken breast

The modification of the lipid profile of chicken breast after being cooked (grilled or roasted) and stored under different conditions (refrigeration T a 4 °C t = 6 d, or freezing T a ‐18 °C t = 3 months, in aerobic or vacuum conditions) was studied. Grilling increased significantly the unsaturated/saturated (2.7) and polyunsaturated/saturated (1.4) ratios of fatty acids in comparison to raw samples (U/S = 1.7, P/S = 0.6) as a consequence of the use of sunflower oil. However, roasted samples did not significantly differ in these ratios (U/S = 1.8, P/S = 0.7) from raw samples. Fresh and stored raw and roasted samples did not show differences when a multivariate analysis was applied, although some significant differences were observed in their fatty acid profile. Frozen grilled samples (both aerobic and vacuum packed) showed differences from immediately cooked (t = 0) and refrigerated grilled samples.