TANDOORI CHICKEN - PROCESSING OPTIMIZED BY RESPONSE-SURFACE METHODOLOGY

Processing of Tandoori Chicken, a marinated and oven baked traditional product, was optimized using response surface methodology. The centra l composite rotatable design used involved three factors: marination d uration, oven temperature, and baking time, each factor had five level s that encompassed a sufficiently wide range across the samples. Quadr actic models were fitted to the measured responses of Warner-Bratzler shear, internal temperature, sensory properties, and microbiological p arameters. Values for the three factors were optimized by minimizing W . B. Shear and maximizing sensory quality by using the flexible polyhe dron search method. The optimal process was to bake chicken for 20 min at 280C after marinating for 120 min. The fitted models for each of t he responses were calculated and graphed. Microbiological data provide d extra strength in supporting the optimum conditions and in allaying apprehension about the safety of marinated products under ambient cond itions.