Acrylamide is a carcinogenic compound which is produced as a result of thermal processing of food materials such as French fries, cereals and meat products. In this study the effects of four different parameters on the level of produced acrylamide in two types of beef burgers during the frying was investigated. Each parameter was used in three levels (temperature at 170, 190, and 210 °C; frying time at 5, 6, and 7 min and meat level at 30, 60, and 85%, and also three types of oil, corn, canola and sunflower). Taguchi's L9 design was applied to carry out the experiments. While temperature and meat level indicated more effect on the production of acrylamide in the studied samples, type of oil did not show any significant effects at all. Frying time (within the range studied here) showed minor contribution on the acrylamide level produced during the frying.
Keywords: Acrylamide; Beef burger; Frying time; Meat level; Taguchi’s design; Temperature.