An Investigation of Food Quality and Oil Stability Indices of Muruku by Cluster Analysis and Discriminant Analysis

In the present study, the quality of Muruku, a popular Indian traditional snack prepared by deep frying, was determined. Seven different brands or types of Muruku were obtained based on packaging types. The average fat and moisture content were 29.27% to 45.47% and 0.73% to 5.35%, respectively. The ratio of polyunsaturated to saturated fatty acids falls within the healthy range of 0.20 to 0.33. The oil indices analysis showed that the values of peroxide (PV), p-anisidine (PAV), acid value (AV) and thiobarbituric acid (TBA) of the oil extracted from the Muruku were in the range of 3.52 to 10.27 meq O2/kg, 3.67 to 14.04, 3.71 to 15.73 mg KOH/g and 2.42 to 38.59 mg malonaldehyde eq/kg, respectively. Cluster analysis grouped the samples into four groups indicating differences in the quality of the snack. Discriminant analysis showed that average lightness, redness, yellowness values, saturated fatty acids content, TBA, PAV, and moisture content were the main contributors in discriminating the samples. This suggests that most of the Muruku samples were subjected secondary oxidation either due to long storage because of inappropriate packaging technology employed or exposure to light and heat, which may increase the risk of rancidity and toxicity.