Chemical profile and sensory properties of different foods cooked by a new radiofrequency oven

Abstract

Radio frequency (RF) heating has been used for numerous applications in the food industry such as baking, thawing or pasteurisation. It reduces cooking time, and it helps to retain acceptable food colour and texture. In this paper, chemical and sensory data obtained from broccoli, potatoes, salmon and cocoa cakes cooked using an innovative RF oven were reported. The oven has an algorithm able to monitor the energy feedback from the cavity and to adjust the energy output accordingly. The different foods were cooked to the same end point and the concentration of phytochemicals, vitamins and acrylamide were assessed. Results demonstrated that RF oven preserved ascorbic acid and increased glucosinolates concentration in broccoli and it decreased the formation of acrylamide in roasted potatoes more than 50%. The total amount of vitamins B was 30% and 50% higher in RF cooked salmon than conventionally cooked salmon prepared at 55 and 75°C, respectively.