EFFECTS OF PROCESSING CONDITIONS AND SORGHUM CULTIVAR ON ALKALINE-PROCESSED SNACKS

Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) grain was boiled or autoclaved i n alkali, washed, drained, and dried into shelf-stable half-products ( pellets). The pellets were deep-fat fried to produce a crunchy snack p roduct. Effects of cooking time, drying method (pellet moisture conten t), and sorghum cultivar on unfried and fried pellets were evaluated. Increasing the alkaline cooking time from 30 to 60 min decreased the y ield of the pellets from 96 to 84% (on a dry weight basis). Cooked sor ghum dried at room temperature (24 degrees C) for 18 hr, followed by o ven-drying at 50 degrees C for an additional 18 hr, produced pellets w ith a low moisture content (less than or equal to 5%), that required a higher frying temperature (greater than or equal to 220 degrees C). H owever, cooked sorghum dried at room temperature for 18 hr followed by oven-drying at 50 degrees C for 5 hr produced pellets with 9% moistur e and a lighter-density highly acceptable product when fried at 220 de grees C. Fat content of fried pellets averaged 18%. The optimum method for producing a light, crunchy, fried product was cooking for 60 min, drying to 9% moisture, and frying at 220 degrees C. ATx631Tx436, the hardest endosperm-texture sorghum used in the study, had the highest unfried and fried pellet yields. Dorado, an intermediate-to-soft endos perm-texture sorghum, and ATx Arg-1Tx2907, a waxy sorghum, had lower yields. The fried pellets produced from Dorado and waxy sorghum (ATxAr g-1Tx2907) were more expanded than those produced from ATx631*Tx436.