Smoked Fish Laminates: A Product from Pangas Fillet for Better Drying Efficiency and Reduced Processing Time

Abstract

The North-East India is well-known for having various traditional fish products and preservation techniques. One such product is ‘Smoked fish’. It’s a cured fish product made of small indigenous fishes like Puntius spp., Mystus spp., Mola spp., Channa spp., etc. and it is most popular in Manipur among all the Northeastern States. Pangas fish, which is less preferred and consumed, was used for the study. Prior to dehydration, Pangas fish laminates were prepared by applying constant pressure to fillets making it flat which increases surface area ensuring uniform drying. Further, laminates were smoked at standard temperature till characteristic colour and flavour and moisture content reduced to 28.66% with high protein content of 36.96% and improved the shelf life upto 10 weeks. Fat and ash content increased to smoked laminates from 5.77 to 7.26% and 0.94 to 4.8% respectively. Vacuum packaging ensures good shelf life of smoked laminates under ambient storage.