Modeling the Inclusion of Fish Powder and Fish Oil into Extruded Snacks by Response Surface Methodology

ABSTRACT

Extrusion cooking plays an important role in the production of puffed snacks, which enjoy wide acceptance all over the world and are potential vehicles for increasing the consumption of n-3 fatty acids. Response surface methodology (RSM) with central composite design was adopted to investigate the effects of four independent variables (fish powder, fish oil, moisture, and screw speed) at five levels on expansion ratio, breaking strength index, hardness, color, and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS). A second order polynomial model was used to study the main, interactive, and quadratic effects of the independent variables and to explain the relationship between the responses and independent variables. Moisture was found to be the most significant factor (p < 0.001) influencing expansion ratio, breaking strength index, and color. Inclusion of fish powder and fish oil were found to be negatively associated with the expansion characteristics, resulting in decreased lipid oxidation due to less exposed surface area of the extrudates to air. Further, the absence of linear effect of fish powder and fish oil on TBARS demonstrated the possibility to incorporate higher levels of these ingredients to produce oxidatively stable extruded snacks rich in fish proteins.