Dados do Trabalho

Título

NUGGETS FROM MECHANICALLY SEPARATED MEAT OF NILE TILAPIA (Oreochromis niloticus) WITH AND WITHOUT EDIBLE COATINGS

Introdução

The production of fish nuggets is an alternative to the valorization of mechanically separated fish meat (MSM). However, the consumption of breaded food is often avoided due to the large amount of fat absorbed during deep frying in oil. The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) MSM nuggets wrapped with an edible coating to reduce the fat absorption during frying.

Material e Métodos

Different combinations of corn starch (CS), gelatin, and plasticizer (glycerol or sorbitol) were evaluated for their lipid absorption. The fish nuggets were divided into 6 treatments. T1 and T2 are referred to the products without the addition of coating, and raw or fried, respectively. Coatings from other treatments contained, per 100 mL-1 of distilled water: 7g CS, 20g glycerol (T3); 5g CS, 20g sorbitol (T4); 5g CS, 5g gelatin, 20g sorbitol (T5); 7g CS, 7g gelatin, 20g sorbitol (T6). Best treatments were evaluated through chemical (proximate composition), physical (breading yield, shear force, instrumental color), microbiological and sensory analyses.

Resultados e Discussão

T1 and T2 differed from each other (p<0.05). T4 presented lipid content lower (p<0.05) than the raw control (T1). T3, T5 and T6 did not differ from T1 (p<0.05). T2 and T4 were further studied due to their reduced lipid absorption. Proximate composition differed (p<0.05) only due to the carbohydrates present in the coating, resulting in a breading yield of 23.80% (T4). A higher shear force (24.83 N; p<0.05) was observed for T4. Both T2 and T4 had acceptance indexes greater than 70%, except for the color. The instrumental color analysis revealed that the coating and the frying affected the color parameters a* and b*.

Conclusão

Higher lipid absorption was observed when the nugget was fried without coating. T4 significantly reduced (p<0.05) lipid absorption compared to the other treatments due to the increment of non-lipid mass from the coating compounds and possibly very reduced lipid absorption, providing a healthier product. Despite the purchase intention likely being constrained by the acceptance rate achieved for the color, 58% of panelists certainly or probably would purchase T4, indicating that its commercialization would be viable if available to the market.