The main aim of this research was to investigate the effects of simultaneous changing of maize grits particle size and moisture content on some physical properties and microstructure of the expanded snacks produced by an industrial single screw extruder. Maize grits with different particle sizes of 212-299, 300-474, 475-680, 681-870, 871-1,016, and 1,017-1,070 μm and various moisture contents of 15, 16, 17, and 18% were used to manufacture puffed products. The samples produced with larger particle sizes and higher moisture content exhibited lower water absorption and water solubility indices and less expansion and crispiness than other samples. As microstructure results revealed, these samples showed more uneven surface and thicker cross-section. Overall, controlling both moisture content and particle size of maize grits had significant effects on the quality of the snacks. However, the impact of changing particle size on the snack properties was greater than changing the moisture content. This research has implications in food industry in production of puffed snacks using extrusion process. The results provide practical and green methods of improving the quality of the snacks by choosing the appropriate feed particle size and moisture content. The approach introduced in this paper is easy to impediment in the food industry without the need to change extruder configuration or adding to the list of ingredients and additives.
Keywords: extrusion cooking; maize grits; puffed snacks; single screw extruder.
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