Impact of Batter Coating, Freezing, and Storage on Meat-analog Based Parfried Foods Mass, Structure, and Physicochemical Changes

This study investigated the evolution of mass-exchange, physicochemical, mechanical, thermal, and structural properties of meat analog (MA)-based batter-coated parfried food. Wheat and rice flour–based batter systems were used to coat the MA. Parfried (at 180 °C for 60 s) MA were frozen at − 18 °C, − 76 °C, and liquid N₂ and stored at − 18 °C for up to 6 months. Parfried MA were finish-fried at 180 °C for 180 s and their attributes were studied. Results reveal that batter formulation and freezing considerably impact the moisture-fat profile as well as textural attributes (hardness, brittleness, crispiness) of finish-fry–coated MA. The color of finish-fry–coated MA is batter formulation–dependent and different than parfried MA. Freezing at − 76 °C slowed quality deterioration of parfried MA in comparison to freezing at − 18 °C. Compared to low-moisture–containing parfried MA, high-moisture–containing coated parfried MA are greatly affected by the freezing process and frozen storage. Storage loss (SL, %) of coated parfried MA increased with the duration of frozen storage, and SL is greatly impacted by batter formulation. Frozen storage duration of parfry-coated MA is negatively correlated with the moisture content of finish-fried MA. Storage duration is positively correlated with fat content and hardness of finish-fried MA. Batter formulation impacted glass-transition temperature (Tg) of parfried MA, that consequently affected their frozen storage quality and finish-frying behavior. Scanning electron microscopy provided mechanistic insights in understanding the impacts of batter formulation and freezing rates on microstructural attributes and consequentially quality evolution of MA-based coated product.