Abstract: The objective of the study was to investigate the effects of starch, flaxseed gum (FG), storage temperature and their interaction on the water-holding capacity (WHC), texture profile and sensory quality of sausage and to explore the underlying mechanism using factorial design. The results revealed that, the WHC measured after 45 days of storage was significantly decreased with increasing amount of starch (P < 0.05), while it was significantly increased with increasing amount of starch and temperature (P < 0.05). The interaction between starch and storage temperature had a significant influence on the WHC (P < 0.05). Texture profile analysis (TPA) indicated that different mixing ratios of starch and FG had different effects on the hardness and chewiness, but resulted in increased springiness. The rise in storage temperature led to an increase in the hardness and chewiness and a decrease in the springiness. The interaction between starch and FG could significantly decrease the hardness and chewiness while springiness decreased significantly due to the interaction between starch and storage temperature. From the results of sensory evaluation, the sensory quality of sausage, which was closely related to the interaction between starch and FG, could be improved by adding less starch and more FG, and lowering storage temperature.

Key words: starch, flaxseed gum (FG), storage temperature, sausage, factorial design