EFFECT OF WATER MEAL AND TARO RATIO ON THE CHARACTERISTICS OF CRACKERS

Abstract

The objective of this study was to study the mixing ratio of water meal and taro powders on the characteristics of crackers. A mixture design was used for varying the amount of cassava flour, water meal powder, and taro powder for six cracker formulas. The physical, chemical, and sensory qualities of crackers from water meal and taro were examined, while chemical compositions were analyzed for the appropriate formula. The results showed that the physical and chemical properties of the six formulas of crackers from water meal and taro were significantly different (P≤0.05). The crackers containing a low amount of water meal (2%) had higher lightness (L*), redness (a*), and yellowness (b*) values than the formulas containing a high amount of water meal (7 and 12 %). All six cracker formulas had water activity values (a_w) ​​in the range of 0.279-0.305 and moisture contents in the range of 2.35-3.29 %. The swelling rate of the crackers depended on the amount of water meal powder used in the ingredients. The formula with a high content of water meal powder resulted in a low swelling rate of crackers. For the sensory quality, the cracker formula containing 71% cassava flour, 2% water meal powder, and 27% taro powder received the highest scores from the panelists in terms of appearance, color, smell, taste, texture (crispness), and overall liking (P≤0.05). This cracker product from water meal and taro (100 grams) contains the contents of moisture, protein, fat, ash, fiber, and carbohydrate for 3.78, 2.49,7.71, 3.18, 3.05, and 79.79%, respectively. The results of this study are intended to develop healthy snack foods and promote the use of more local ingredients.