Proximate composition and organoleptic assessment of Snakehead (Parachanna obscura Gunther, 1861) smoke-dried with different processing materials

This study examined the effects of three different drying/processing materials (sawdust, charcoal and electric oven) on the proximate composition and organoleptic properties of Parachanna obscura. Samples of P. obscura with mean weight of 283±74.80 g were procured from fish mongers at the fishermen’s landing site at Ode Ekiti, Gbonyin Local Government Area, Ekiti State, Nigeria and were transported to the laboratory of the Department of Animal and Environmental Biology, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko, Nigeria. In the laboratory, the fishes were cleaned, gutted, sorted, rinsed thoroughly with water, divided into three groups of five fish, soaked in 10 % brine solution for 2 min, drained and placed on wire guaze. Each group was dried for 4 hours at 60 ℃ with sawdust, charcoal and electric oven respectively. The proximate compositions were determined using standard methods while the organoleptic properties of the samples were determined by subjecting the labelled processed fish samples to sensory evaluation by a trained test panel on a five-point hedonic scale. The proximate analyses revealed that fish samples dried with sawdust and charcoal had higher scores for ash than oven dried fish in comparison with the control. The protein content of oven dried sample was higher than smoke-dried samples. The results of the organoleptic evaluation obtained revealed that there was no significant difference among the sensory parameters and concluded that electric oven could be a suitable method of fish processing without the loss of the major nutrients and sensory qualities.