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Physicochemical Evaluation and Optimization of Enriched Expanded Pellets with Milk Protein Concentrate

¹Maestría en Ciencia y Tecnología de Alimentos, Universidad Autónoma de Sinaloa, Apdo. Postal 1354, Culiacán, Sin., C.P. 80000, México. Phone: (52) 667 7136615. Fax: (52) 667-7136615. ²Ciencia de Materiales, CINVESTAV Querétaro, Apdo. Postal 1-798, Querétaro, Qro., C.P. 76230, México. Phone: (52) 442 4414905. Fax: (52) 442 4414938. ³Corresponding author. E-mail: zazuetaj@uas.uasnet.mx

The objective of this work was to study the effect of addition of milk protein concentrate (MPC, 0–10%) and feed moisture (FM, 20–30%) in a blend of corn starch (CS, 80%) and quality protein maize (QPM, 20%) on different physicochemical characteristics of third-generation (3G) snack foods using extrusion technology. A laboratory single-extruder with a 3:1 compression ratio, a rectangular die, and a central composite nonroutable model with two variables were used. The physicochemical characteristics evaluated were expansion index (EI), bulk density (BD), penetration force (PF), and color parameters L*a*b*. EI decreased with the increase of MPC and FM, whereas BD and color parameters (a* and b*) increased; PF showed a minimum point (MPC = 5% and FM = 25%). EI, BD, and PF were selected for the optimization process in an area of superposition of 1.5–4.1% of MPC and 20.0–24.1% of FM. A validation of the optimal area was performed on samples with average values of 4.64 (±0.28) for EI, 141.02 (±7.29) kg m^–3 for BD, and 0.0033 (±0.00065) for N m PF. It is feasible to obtain a functional 3G snack food with good expansion characteristics using a microwave oven, and this snack has health benefits due to the addition of MPC and QPM.