Development of Protein-enriched Dried Noodles from Giant Cricket (Brachytrupes portentosus) Powder

Abstract

The giant cricket is an edible insect that is widely consumed and rich in nutritional value. This study aimed to develop high-protein dried noodles fortified with giant cricket powder. Giant cricket powder contained the percentages of protein, fat, ash, carbohydrate and moisture of 60.13, 24.49, 5.47, 5.98 and 3.93, respectively. To determine the optimal level of giant cricket powder supplementation, four substitution levels including 0% (as the control), 5%, 10% and 15% were tested by replacing wheat flour with giant cricket powder. Sensory evaluation results indicated that the dried noodles with 10% giant cricket powder received the highest overall acceptability score. The sensory evaluation scores for color, aroma, taste and texture were 7.53, 6.17, 6.67 and 6.47 respectively, resulting in an overall acceptability score of 6.47, which was categorized within the ‘slightly liked’ to ‘moderately liked’ range. These scores were not significantly different (p > 0.05) from the control noodles without giant cricket powder. The addition of 10% giant cricket powder reduced lightness and yellowness while increasing redness compared to the control noodles. The percentages of protein, fat, ash, carbohydrate and moisture were 18.90, 6.51, 1.56, 62.23 and 10.80, respectively, yielding an energy value of 369.71 kcal/100 g. These noodles exhibited higher protein, fat, ash, and energy content than the control noodles due to the giant cricket powder supplementation. The 10% giant cricket fortified dried noodles met the chemical quality standards for instant noodles set by the Thai Industrial Standard Institute (TISI 271-2563), which require a moisture content of no more than 12.5% and a minimum protein content of 10%. Furthermore, this product can be regarded as a source of protein, as their protein content exceeded 10% of the Thai Recommended Daily Intake (RDI).