Production of instant cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) tuber flour for water fufu: optimization of process conditions

Abstract

Production of instant cassava tuber flour for water fufu is an appealing process because of a significant reduction in cooking time, it involves less tedious preparation, the flour has improved odor with a significant increase in shelf life, and is of better quality. However, the optimum cassava fermentation and precooking parameters; two critical unit operations in the process, as well as their effects on the quality and shelf life of the product have not been studied elaborately. The Doehlert design was employed to optimize the fermentation and the precooking processes of cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) tuber to produce instant flour for water fufu. Second-order polynomial models with high R² (> 0.75) and low absolute error of deviation (< 5%) values between experimental and predicted results were validated for both the fermentation and pre-cooking processes and used to generate optimum cooking conditions. The optimum conditions to produce instant cassava tuber flour were 2 days of fermentation, 30 mm thick cassava slices, 200 g cassava quantity, 5 min cooking time, and 75 °C cooking temperature. Results characterizing the nutrient retention of the instant cassava flour were pH (4.98 ± 0.02), TA (0.09 ± 0.01%), carbohydrate content (20 ± 0.04%), cyanide content (0.70 mg ± 0.03%), and moisture content (8.09 ± 0.2%).