Ultrasound-assisted extraction of edible cricket oils from Gryllus bimaculatus and Acheta domesticus

Demand for edible insects, especially crickets, for human consumption has trended increasingly as a result of their high nutrients. Apart from containing high protein, cricket also has a high fat content consisting of essential fatty acids, which can be produced as a valuable edible oil source. This study aimed to investigate the effect of green extraction methods on the chemical, physical, and biological properties of cricket oils. The full-fat cricket powder from Gryllus bimaculatus and Acheta domesticus was extracted using ultrasound extraction (UAE) with water as a green solvent, hot stirrer with water (SW), and mechanical hot press oil machine (HP). The Soxhlet extraction with n-hexane servesd as a control. The oil yield from both cricket species obtained by the UAE process was 72–75 g/100 g of total lipid content found by Soxhlet extraction, which was higher than SW and HP. The oils from both crickets extracted using the UAE showed significantly stronger antioxidant activity (DPPH and FRAP) and higher TPC compared to the oils obtained from other extraction methods. Similarly, L*, a*, and b* in the oils obtained from UAE were also found to have higher values. For the chemical quality of the oils, the FFA, PV, and TBA values of the oils obtained by UAE were slowler than other methods over 28 days of storage. The concentrations of α-linolenic (omega 3) and total mono-unsaturated fatty (MUFA) acids were also higher in both of the obtained cricket oils. The results suggested that ultrasound-assisted extraction is a potential green process for oil extraction to improve the quality of the cricket oil.