The Effect of Ohmic Heating on the Quality Properties of Couscous during Cooking

Abstract

Couscous has been widely eaten around the world because it has a low glycemic index, is low in fat, and is simple to prepare. However, it should be cooked before consumption. Therefore, novel heating methods, such as ohmic heating, can be used to cook couscous. This study aimed to investigate the potential use of ohmic heating at a voltage gradient of 17 V/cm to cook couscous and compare it with the conventional cooking method. To determine the effect of ohmic heating and conventional methods on the quality properties (color, texture profile analysis, cooking loss, moisture content, and weight increase (%)) of couscous, samples were cooked in a 0.1% salt solution. The samples were analyzed at different cooking times (4, 8, 12, and 16 min). The results obtained in the present study revealed that the total color difference also increased with an increase in cooking time. In addition, similar trends were observed for cooking loss, moisture content, and weight gain. Furthermore, the couscous samples treated with ohmic heating and conventional heating methods were completely cooked after 12 minutes. Overall, compared to the conventional cooking method, the ohmic heating process did not induce any negative effects on the quality parameters of couscous.