Abstract:

Extrusion cooking has been widely used in the field of food due to its high efficiency, multi-functions, low cost and low energy consumption. However, effects of extrusion cooking on nutritional quality are still ambiguous. The beneficial effects include destruction of anti-nutritional factors, improvement of protein digestibility, enhancement of starch gelatination, increase of soluble dietary fiber and reduction of lipid oxidation. On the other hand, adverse effects include acceleration of the Maillard reaction between protein and sugar, and loss of heat-liable vitamins depending on raw material types, their composition and processing conditions. In this paper, the effects of extrusion cooking on nutritional components are reviewed, which will provide references for food extrusion industry.

Key words: extrusion cooking, nutritional components, food processing