Response surface methodology was used to study the effect of egg albumen
(5–15 g), vegetable oil (5–15 g), and corn bran (5–15 g) on
sensory and textural (firmness and toughness) quality of chicken nuggets cooked
by the oven, steam, and microwave methods. The egg albumen and vegetable oil had
a positive linear effect but corn bran had a negative linear effect at
p<0.01 on sensory overall acceptability scores of nuggets. Firmness and
toughness scores were increased significantly (p<0.01) with the increase
in corn bran level in the formulation. The optimum level of egg albumen,
vegetable oil, and corn bran were obtained and validated. Cooking methods also
affected the sensory and textural quality of nuggets. Steam cooked nuggets had
higher values of sensory scores than oven and microwave cooked nuggets. Oven
cooked nuggets showed higher values of firmness and toughness than steam and
microwave cooked nuggets. Results of this study suggest that emulsion based meat
products can be enriched with dietary fiber source like corn bran without
compromising the sensory and textural quality of the products.