Food Protection Trends - September/October 2021 - 478

pasta were provided by the NPA (Table 1). In brief, the dry
and wet ingredients were combined and formed into dough
by using the stand mixer, and then the dough was allowed to
rest under refrigeration conditions for at least 40 min. After
resting, the dough was extruded through the appropriate
pasta die by using the pasta press; the extruded dough was
cut to a suitable noodle length as it exited the pasta die with
a sanitized knife. The noodles were then placed in the pasta
dryer and allowed to dry to a target water activity of 0.55 to
0.65 (approximately 18 to 24 h). Once drying was complete,
the inoculated dry pasta noodles were packaged by type in
sterile plastic bags and stored under ambient conditions until
used in the study.
One batch of S. enterica-inoculated noodles per noodle
type was prepared for the study. The elbow noodles and flat
noodles inoculated with pathogenic E. coli were produced in
one batch each, and the pathogenic E. coli-inoculated no-boil
lasagna noodles were prepared in two independent batches.
Microwave cooking of elbow noodles
The inoculated elbow noodles were exposed to the
microwave cooking treatment as part of an " elbow noodles
in a cup " product. The parameters of the microwave cooking
treatment were selected to represent handling typical of an
elbow noodles in a cup product when being prepared for
consumption.
In total, five inoculated batches of elbow noodles per
pathogenic organism were subjected to the microwave
cooking treatment; each batch was prepared immediately
before use. To make an inoculated batch, 6 g of inoculated
elbow noodles and 30 g of uninoculated elbow noodles were
placed into one cooking cup. Next, 3.8 g of antifoaming agent
and 150 g of warm water (32 ± 1°C) were added to the cup,
and the total contents of the cup were stirred for 30 s. Each
batch was then individually microwaved for 2.5 min on high
setting. Immediately after the microwave cooking treatment
was applied, the batch was removed from the microwave and
transferred to a sterile plastic bag. The contents of the bag
were submerged in an ice water bath for 20 min to cool the
batch quickly and arrest further heat treatment. Once cool,
the inoculated elbow noodles were collected using sterile
forceps and transferred to a sterile plastic bag; each aliquot
of inoculated noodles was considered to be one sample.
In addition, two uninoculated batches were prepared per
pathogenic organism by using uninoculated elbow noodles
and treated in the same manner as the inoculated batches.
In total, three positive control samples per pathogenic
organism were prepared. To make a positive control sample,
6 g of dry inoculated elbow noodles was transferred to a
sterile plastic bag and diluted 1:10 (by weight) with PW. The
bag was then submerged in an ice water bath for 20 min to
mimic the handling of the microwave-treated samples.
The water activity of the inoculated elbow noodles was
measured immediately before inclusion into the elbow noo478
Food Protection Trends September/October
dles in a cup product and immediately after the application
of the microwave cooking treatment. The temperature of
each inoculated batch was also measured immediately before
and immediately after exposure to the microwave treatment
by using an Omega HH84 rugged temperature data logger
(OMEGA Engineering Inc.) and K type thermocouple
(SA1XL-K-120-SRTC, OMEGA Engineering Inc.). The
experiment was executed twice per pathogenic organism.
Stovetop cooking of flat noodles
The inoculated flat noodles were exposed to the stovetop
cooking treatment as part of a 100-g batch of flat noodles
in boiling water. The parameters of the stovetop cooking
treatment were selected to represent handling typical of a flatnoodle
type product when being prepared for consumption.
One inoculated batch of flat noodles per pathogenic
organism was subjected to the stovetop cooking treatment;
each batch was prepared immediately before use. To make
an inoculated batch, 25 to 50 g of inoculated flat noodles
was mixed with enough uninoculated flat noodles to yield
a final batch mass of 100 g. Next, a total of 0.833 L of water
was brought to a rolling boil on the stovetop, and the batch
of flat noodles was added to the boiling water and allowed
to cook for 6 min uncovered. After 6 min of cooking, the
flat noodles were separated from the water with a colander
and then were transferred to a sterile plastic bag. The batch
was submerged in an ice water bath for 20 min to cool the
flat noodles quickly and arrest further heat treatment. After
cooling, sterile forceps were used to collect the inoculated
flat noodles and divide them into five equal aliquots (by
weight) into sterile plastic bags; each aliquot of inoculated
noodles was considered to be one sample. In addition, one
uninoculated batch per pathogenic organism was prepared
using uninoculated flat noodles and treated in the same
manner as the inoculated batch; two replicate samples were
collected from each uninoculated batch.
In total, three positive control samples per pathogenic
organism were prepared. To make a positive control sample,
5 to 10 g of dry inoculated flat noodles was transferred to a
sterile plastic bag and diluted 1:10 dilution (by weight) with
PW. The bag was then submerged in an ice water bath for 20
min to mimic the handling of the stovetop-treated samples.
The water activity of the inoculated flat noodles was
measured immediately before inclusion into the batch
and immediately after the application of the stovetop
cooking treatment. The experiment was executed twice per
pathogenic organism.
Baking cooking of no-boil lasagna noodles
The inoculated no-boil lasagna noodles were exposed to
the baking cooking treatment as part of a three-layer lasagna.
The parameters of the baking cooking treatment were
selected to represent handling typical of a no-boil lasagna
noodle product when being prepared for consumption. The
Food Protection Trends - September/October 2021

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