Development of Low-Fat Enrobed Fish Cutlets Using Konjac Glucomannan: Effect on Technological and Quality Attributes

Introduction: Value addition to fish meat-based products involves innovative approaches that improve shelf life, texture, sensory attributes, and overall acceptability. Changing consumer lifestyles and preferences have increased the demand for ready-to-eat deep-fried foods. However, deep frying results in significant oil uptake, which is associated with potential health concerns. In this context, hydrocolloids such as konjac glucomannan (KGM) can be used in batter formulations to reduce oil uptake and improve functional properties. Therefore, the present study was designed to evaluate the effect of konjac glucomannan incorporation on the quality characteristics of enrobed fish cutlets.

Methods: Fish cutlets prepared from Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) were dipped in batter incorporated with different levels of konjac glucomannan (0, 1%, 2%, 3% and 4%). The battered and breaded products were evaluated for coating characteristics such as coating pickup, cooking yield, frying loss, adhesion degree, proximate composition, texture profile analysis, and instrumental colour using standard procedures.

Results: The incorporation of konjac glucomannan significantly influenced the quality attributes of fish cutlets. Coating pickup (16.76-46.41%), cooking yield (10.39-41.21%), and adhesion degree (14.05-29.22%) increased, while frying loss decreased (5.76-1.09%) with increasing levels of konjac glucomannan. Moisture content decreased from 62.65% to 58.06%, whereas lipid content reduced from 13% to 7.14% with increasing incorporation levels. Textural parameters such as hardness (3591.15-6620 g), gumminess (1714-2723), and chewiness (1274.32-1599.12) exhibited an increasing trend. Instrumental colour analysis revealed an increase in lightness (L*) from 36.32 to 52.43, while redness (a*) decreased from 12.62 to 6.99 with increasing KGM concentration.

Conclusion: Based on coating characteristics and overall quality parameters, batter containing 2% konjac glucomannan (T2) was found to be optimal for coated fish cutlets. The incorporation of konjac glucomannan showed a positive effect on technological, textural, and quality attributes and can be recommended for the development of improved low-fat fried fish products.