Production of low-fat shrimps by using hydrocolloid coatings

Effect of Pretreatment Methods on the Formation of Advanced Glycation End Products in Fried Shrimp

Fried shrimp are popular for their attractive organoleptic and nutritional qualities. However, consumers are more concerned about the safety of fried foods. To investigate the formation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) in fried shrimp and provide pretreatment guidance for producing low-AGEs fried pacific white shrimp were treated with seven pretreatment methods before frying. The AGEs contents, physicochemical indicators, and their correlations in the fried shrimps' interior, surface, and batter layer were analyzed. Results indicated that pretreatment methods influenced both Maillard and oxidation reactions by altering the basic compositions, which controlled the formation of AGEs. The highest and lowest AGEs contents were obtained in shelled shrimp with exscinded back and whole shrimp, respectively. The batter-coated treatment reduced the AGEs contents in samples but increased the oil content. Correlation analysis showed that lipid oxidation was the decisive chemical reaction to the formation of AGEs by promoting the generation of dicarbonyl compounds and their combination with free amino acids. Conclusively, the whole shrimp was suitable for producing fried shrimp with low AGEs, oil content, and desirable color.

Carboxy Methyl Cellulose, Xanthan Gum, and Carrageenan Coatings Reduced Fat Uptake, Protein Oxidation, and Improved Functionality in Deep-Fried Fish Strips: An Application of the Multiobjective Optimization (MOO) Approach

In this study, a multiobjective optimization (MOO) approach was utilized for effective decision-making when several variables were changing simultaneously during frying. Carboxy methyl cellulose (CMC), xanthan gum, and carrageenan coatings in different concentrations (0.25-1.50%, w/v) were applied on fish strips to reduce the oil uptake and protein oxidation during frying. The pickup of the strips increased significantly (p < 0.05) with increasing concentration. The CMC was effective in oil uptake reduction and protein oxidation, as revealed by the lower carbonyl and sulfhydryl contents in the fried strip. The hardness and chewiness of the coated fish strips were found to be declined significantly (p < 0.05) with increasing coating concentrations. The moisture, lipid, toughness, hardness, cutting force, oiliness, sulfhydryl content (all min), oil uptake reduction, and carbonyl content (both max) were considered as multiple criteria for the MOO technique, and fried strips coated with 1% CMC, followed by 0.75% xanthan gum and 0.75% carrageenan, emerged as the best optimal coating.

Application of guar (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba L.) gum in food technologies: A review of properties and mechanisms of action

With the world continuing to push toward modernization and the consumption of processed foods growing at an exponential rate, the demand for texturizing agents and natural additives has also risen as a result. It has become increasingly common to use thickening agents in food products to modify their rheological and textural properties and enhance their quality characteristics. They can be divided into (1) animal derived (chitosan and isinglass), (2) fermentation produced (xanthan and curdlan), (3) plant fragments (pectin and cellulose), (4) seaweed extracts (agar and alginate), and (5) seed flours (guar gum and locust bean gum). The primary functions of these materials are to improve moisture binding capacity, modify structural properties, and alter flow behavior. In addition, some have another responsibility in the food sector, such as the main ingredient in the delivery systems (encapsulation) and nanocomposites. A galactomannan polysaccharide extracted from guar beans (Cyamopsis tetragonolobus), known as guar gum (GG), is one of them, which has a wide range of utilities and possesses popularity among scientists and consumers. In the world of modernization, GG has found its way into numerous industries for use in food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, textiles, and explosives. Due to its ability to form hydrogen bonds with water molecules, it imparts significant thickening, gelling, and binding properties to the solution as well as increases its viscosity. Therefore, this study is aimed to investigate the characteristics, mechanisms, and applications of GG in different food technologies.

Physical, Chemical and Sensory Characterization of Deep-Fried Fresh-Cut Potatoes Coated with Hydrocolloid/Herbal Extracts

Research background

Recently, natural plant extracts have been used to increase the nutritional value of food and to potentially reduce the absorbed fat and the formation of acrylamide in fried foods. Literature data on the use of edible polymers with nettle or olive leaf extracts are scarce.

Experimental approach

The effect of novel coatings on colour, fat absorption, phenolic and sugar content, and acrylamide formation in deep-fat-fried fresh-cut potatoes was evaluated. Extracts of olive and nettle leaves were incorporated in carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and gum arabic, used as coatings for potatoes and applied before frying. This aimed to improve the nutritional quality of deep-fat-fried fresh-cut potatoes.

Results and conclusions

Enrichment of the edible coatings with extracts resulted in a significant change in the visible colour of the potatoes before frying. Significant effect of the extract amount on the sensory characteristics of potatoes was also observed. Most importantly, the perception of characteristic potato odour and taste was not significantly affected by the coating. Although higher amounts of the extract (1.5%) resulted in higher phenolic mass fraction in fried potatoes, the sensory scores decreased. After frying, fat mass fraction in the coated potatoes was reduced by about 15% compared to the uncoated samples. The type of extract affected the total sugar mass fraction in fried potatoes, which was lower in the samples with coatings enriched with olive leaf than in those with nettle leaf. Only gum arabic coating had a reducing effect on acrylamide mass fraction by 17%. Based on all the obtained results, CMC and gum arabic coatings did not influence sensory properties, so they can be recommended as carriers of functional compounds or as a frying pre-treatment for potatoes with favourable effect on fat and acrylamide content.

Novelty and scientific contribution

The knowledge obtained in this study can be exploited for preparation of coatings with functional compounds used as a pre-treatment for fried food with favourable effect on fat and acrylamide content.

Effect of process parameters of microwave-assisted hot air drying on characteristics of fried black gram papad

Papad is a crunchy wafer-like snack food consumed all over India and other Asian countries. Traditionally, sun-drying requires more drying time and reduces less moisture from papad, which absorbs more oil during frying. The current study was carried out using microwave-assisted hot air drying (MAHD) to reduce fried papad oil content. Box-Behnken design (BBD) was selected to perform 17 trials for drying of papad using MAHD along with different power levels (300, 600, and 900 W), exposure times (30, 60, and 90 s) and hot air temperatures (40, 50 and 60 °C). The fried papad characteristics were evaluated in terms of oil content, oil uptake ratio, porosity, expansion and texture using standard procedures. MAHD helped reduce higher than 30% of fried papad oil content compared to the traditional method. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) confirmed that the MAHD papad has fewer pore structures than sun dried-fried papad. Using response surface methodology (RSM), the optimized parameters of MAHD was found to be 653 W power level with an exposure time of 56 s at 43 °C of drying temperature, which reduced oil content (7.90 ± 0.02%), oil uptake ratio (1.50 ± 0.03), porosity (16.33 ± 0.29%) and expansion (7.97 ± 0.02%) of fried papad.

Schemes for enhanced antioxidant stability in frying meat: a review of frying process using single oil and blended oils

Deep-fried meat products are widely popular. However, harmful compounds produced by various chemical reactions during frying have been shown to be detrimental to human health. It is of great necessity to raise practical suggestions for improving the oxidation problem of frying oils and frying conditions in some aspects. Vegetable oils are not as thermally stable as saturated fats, and blended oils have higher thermal stability than single oil. In this review, we discussed the oxidation problems frying oils and meats are subject to during frying, starting from the oil oxidation mechanism, the effects of different oils and fats on the quality of different fried meats under different conditions were concluded to alleviate the oxidation problem, to highlight the necessity of applying blended oils for frying, and effective antioxidants added to frying oils are also introduced, that would provide more convenient and practical options for obtaining higher quality of fried meat products and offer better understanding of the potential of blended frying oils for frying meat products.

Modeling of osmotic treatment of ostrich meat coated by tragacanth and salep

This study involved coating of ostrich meat pieces (30 × 30 × 20 mm) with tragacanth gum (0.25%, 0.5%, and 1%) and salep gum (1%, 2%, and 3%) before osmotic treatment with salt solution (5, 15, and 27%) with the immersing duration of 1, 2, 4, 12, and 24 h to accelerate the transfer of moisture and minimize solid gain. This study also involved the investigation of the efficiency of the Peleg's model, Azuara's model, and diffusion equation in modeling water gain/loss and solid gain in meat pieces. Water gain/loss and solid gain were significantly affected by osmotic and coating concentrations during osmotic treatment. The Peleg's model had the best efficiency in the prediction of water loss at 5% and 27% concentrations and solid gain at 27% concentration. Diffusion model showed a favorable performance in the prediction of water loss and solid gain at 27% and 15% concentrations, respectively. It can be concluded that coating pre-treatment could control solid gain and facilitate water loss/gain.

Ultrasonic degradation of Persian gum and gum tragacanth: Effect on chain conformation and molecular properties

The present study introduces the ultrasonic modification of two Iranian native gum exudates, Persian gum (PG) and gum tragacanth (GT) for the first time. They were sonicated at a constant frequency of 20 kHz and temperature of 60 °C for various times (0, 2, 5, 10, 20, 30 and 40 min) and the changes in their molecular properties were investigated using oven drying, gel permeation chromatography-multiangle laser-light scattering (GPC-MALLS), rheometery and FTIR analysis. Results indicated that the soluble dry mass of both hydrocolloids was extensively enhanced (from less than 10% at time zero to more than 90% at the end of treatment time) by sonication. Moreover, the molecular weight and viscosity of gums dispersions were decreased with the increase of the treatment time. Fracture in polysaccharide chains was confirmed by analysis of the molecular weight parameters. Calculation of chain breaks and polydispersity index (PDI) revealed that scissions occurred at the backbone as well as the side branches. PG, owing to its higher molecular weight, displayed more extensive and faster degradation than GT. However, the chain rupture of GT was twice more than that of PG at the end of sonication time. The specific volume for gyration (SV_g) and molecular density (ρ) showed that intact PG contains compactly packed molecules with greater number of cross-linked bonds compared to GT. Furthermore, the conformational changes into semi-flexible chains and worm-like coils were determined for both gums after 40 min sonication. Variation of the molecular density along with the results of FTIR analysis demonstrated that ultrasonication broke C-O-C bonds in both PG and GT leading to more flexible chains.

Recent progress in the industrial and biomedical applications of tragacanth gum: A review

Natural polymers have distinct advantages over synthetic polymers because of their abundance, biocompatibility, and biodegradability. Tragacanth gum, an anionic polysaccharide, is a natural polymer which is derived from renewable sources. As a biomaterial, tragacanth gum has been used in industrial settings such as food packaging and water treatment, as well as in the biomedical field as drug carriers and for wound healing purposes. The present review provides an overview on the state-of-the-art in the field of tragacanth gum applications. The structure, properties, cytotoxicity, and degradability as well as the recent advances in industrial and biomedical applications of tragacanth gum are reviewed to offer a backdrop for future research.

Frying of rice flour dough strands containing gum Arabic: texture, sensory attributes and microstructure of products

The effects of rice flour (50-56%, w/w) and gum Arabic (0-5%, w/w) on the physical, sensory and structural features of the fried dough strands were investigated. Up to 25.8% reduction in oil was possible by the incorporation of gum Arabic. The wide variations in failure force (13.8-25.3 N) and failure strain (11.0-28.6%) indicated the formation of snacks varying in texture from a soft-to-bite brittle product to a hard-to-eat less brittle sample. The snacks possessed a porous microstructure with air cells, pores and vacuoles; the cell walls were more than 100 μm in thickness. The textural parameters like failure force, failure energy and failure stress behaved in a similar manner in the principal component analysis biplot. High moisture content in the dough decreased the sensory acceptance of the fried snacks. The high desirability index of 0.9 could be achieved with a high level of rice flour (56%, w/w) while gum Arabic content was between 3.50 and 3.75% (w/w).