Influence of Outer Layer Formulation on the Sensory Properties of Microwaved Breaded Nuggets

Figures & data

Table 1  Sensory analysis descriptors and evaluation techniques

Descriptor	Description	Technique
Golden brown color	Typical golden brown color of fried products	Observe whole surface of nugget
Crunchiness when cutting	A measure of the sound emitted when cutting the nugget	Cut the nugget in half with a knife
Hardness when cutting	A measure of the necessary force to cut the nugget	Cut the nugget in half with a knife
Ease of cutting	A measure of the resistance of the nugget while it is being cut	Cut the nugget in half with a knife
Adherence	Amount of crust that remains stuck along the chicken piece perimeter after cutting	Observe the transversal surfaces of the two nugget halves
Visual juiciness	A measure of the surface appearance of moistness	Observe the transversal surfaces of the two nugget halves
Layer distinctness	A measure of the distinction of the different layers along chicken piece perimeter	Observe the transversal surfaces of the two nugget halves
Crust thickness	An estimated measure of the crust thickness	Observe the transversal surfaces of the two nugget halves
Crunchiness	A measure of the sound emitted while chewing	Bite a nugget in half
Hardness	A measure of the force while biting	Bite a nugget in half
Juiciness	A measure of the rate of liquid release while biting	Bite a nugget in half

Table 2   F- and p-values from analysis of variance for the outer-layer formulation factors: type of the first layer, number of coatings and their interaction, for sensory and instrumental measurements

Measurements	Type of first layer		Number of coatings		Two-way interaction
Sensory assessment	F	p-value	F	p-value	F	p-value
Golden brown color	0.1	0.79	3.1	0.10	0.0	0.85
Crunchiness when cutting	0.0	0.90	1.7	0.21	0.1	0.75
Hardness when cutting	5.4	0.04	3.3	0.10	1.0	0.34
Ease of cutting	0.7	0.43	0.8	0.38	0.0	0.96
Adherence	8.5	0.01	7.4	0.02	8.3	0.01
Visual juiciness	13.7	0.00	1.5	0.25	1.6	0.04
Batter layer distinctiveness	5.4	0.04	27.6	0.00	0.7	0.43
Crust thickness	1.4	0.26	32.2	0.00	1.3	0.28
Crunchiness	0.6	0.45	0.9	0.35	0.0	0.94
Hardness	21.3	0.00	4.1	0.07	0.0	0.95
Juiciness	46.4	<0.0001	5.4	0.04	0.0	0.83
Color
L*	3.1	0.11	0.2	0.69	3.3	0.09
C	1.2	0.29	0.4	0.54	0.1	0.74
H	1.0	0.33	1.1	0.31	0.6	0.47
Texture and sound emission
Number of sound peaks	13.9	0.00	2.8	0.12	22.2	0.00
Number of sound peaks	2.1	0.17	11.7	0.01	0.0	0.94
Max SPL	1.9	0.20	1.5	0.24	0.5	0.49
Moisture and fat content
Crust moisture	32.9	<0.0001	3.7	0.08	0.1	0.71
Crust fat	188.7	<0.0001	23.1	0.00	12.4	0.00
Core moisture	25.8	0.00	18.9	0.00	15.7	0.00
Core fat	18.0	0.00	5.6	0.04	0.2	0.65

Table 3  Mean and standard deviation of sensory QDA values for samples with one coating of commercial batter and breading (B1) or two (B2), or with one coating of beaten egg and breading (E1) or two (E2)

Attribute	B1	B2	E1	E2
Golden brown color	5.9 ± 0.6^a	6.6 ± 0.8^a	6.0 ± 1.1^a	6.8 ± 0.7^a
Crunchiness when cutting	3.0 ± 0.2^a	3.8 ± 0.8^a	3.2 ± 1.6^a	3.7 ± 1.0^a
Hardness when cutting	6.1 ± 0.4^ab	4.9 ± 0.5^a	6.6 ± 1.4^b	6.3 ± 0.6^a
Ease of cutting	5.7 ± 0.7^a	6.0 ± 0.3^a	5.4 ± 1.2^a	5.7 ± 0.4^a
Adherence	6.8 ± 0.8^a	6.9 ± 0.8^a	6.8 ± 0.6^a	3.9 ± 1.6^b
Visual juiciness	4.9 ± 0.5^ab	5.6 ± 0.3^a	4.2 ± 0.6^b	4.2 ± 0.8^b
Layer distinctiveness	4.5 ± 0.7^ab	6.7 ± 1.5^a	2.9 ± 0.4^b	5.9 ± 1.0^c
Crust thickness	3.5 ± 0.5^a	6.2 ± 1.8^b	2.2 ± 0.3^a	6.2 ± 1.4^b
Crunchiness	3.1 ± 0.4^a	3.5 ± 0.6^a	2.6 ± 1.5^a	3.2 ± 1.3^a
Hardness	4.9 ± 1.1^ab	4.0 ± 1.3^a	7.2 ± 0.3^c	6.2 ± 0.9^bc
Juiciness	5.9 ± 0.7^a	7.0 ± 0.7^a	3.1 ± 0.1^b	4.0 ± 1.4^b
Identical letters in the same row indicate that there is no significant difference at p > 0.05 (Fisher´s least significant differences).

Figure 1 (a) Interaction between number of coatings and type of first layer (egg or batter) for sensory adherence. (b) Interaction between number of coatings and type of first layer (egg or batter) for sensory visual juiciness.

Figure 2 Typical profile of a fried nugget. Force (black line) and sound pressure level (SPL, grey line) versus distance for chicken nuggets cooked by deep frying.

Table 4  Instrumental determinations for samples with one coating of commercial batter and breading (B1) or two (B2), or with one coating of beaten egg and breading (E1) or two (E2)

	Blade cutting
	Mechanical	Sound
Sample	No. of force peaks	No. of sound peaks	Max. SPL (dB)	Crust moisture (g/100 g) db	Crust fat (g/100 g) db
B1	6.3 ± 2.2^a	4.0 ± 2.2^a	61.3 ± 1.7^a	40.5 ± 2.7^a	15.7 ± 1.4^a
B2	18.3 ± 4.1^b	9.8 ± 4.5^bc	61.0 ± 1.3^a	42.2 ± 2.5^a	17.0 ± 1.9^a
E1	10.5 ± 3.3^c	6.4 ± 1.4^ab	62.1 ± 0.8^a	33.7 ± 2.4^b	26.0 ± 1.3^b
E2	16.4 ± 2.8^d	12.4 ± 2.7^c	66.1 ± 2.5^a	36.2 ± 0.8^b	34.4 ± 2.9^c
Identical letters in the same column indicate no significant difference at p > 0.05 (Fisher's least significant differences).