Assessment of Chokeberry Powders Quality Obtained Using an Innovative Fluidized-Bed Jet Milling and Drying Method with Pre-Drying Compared with Convection Drying

Interpreting the variation in particle size of ground spice by high-resolution visual and spectral imaging: A ginger case study

High-resolution (HR) visual imaging and spectral imaging are common computer vision-based techniques used for food quality analysis and/or authentication based on the interaction of light and material surface and/or composition. The particle size of ground spices is an important morphological feature that affects the physico-chemical properties of food products containing such particles. This study aimed to interpret the impact of particle size of ground spice on its HR visual profile and spectral imaging profile using ginger powder as a representative spice powder model. The results revealed an increase in the light reflection with the decrease of particle size of ginger powder, which was manifested by the lighter colour (higher percentage of the colour code with lighter yellow colour) of the HR visual image and stronger reflection with spectral imaging. The study also revealed that, in spectral imaging, the influence of the particle size of ginger powder increased with rising wavelengths. Finally, the results indicated a relationship between spectral wavelengths, ginger particle size, and other natural variables of the products which might be generated from cultivation to processing. Ultimately, the impact of natural variables arising during the food production process on the physico-chemical properties of the product should be fully considered or even additionally evaluated prior to the application of specific food quality and/or authentication analytical techniques.

Phenomenology of Neapolitan Pizza Baking in a Traditional Wood-Fired Oven

Despite Neapolitan pizza is a globally renowned Italian food, its obligatory baking in wood-fired ovens has so far received little attention in the scientific community. Since heat transfer during pizza baking is not at all uniform, the main aim of this work was to analyze the phenomenology of Neapolitan pizza baking in a pilot-scale wood-fired pizza oven operating in quasi steady-state conditions. The different upper area sections of pizza covered or not by the main topping ingredients (i.e., tomato puree, sunflower oil, or mozzarella cheese), as well the bottom of the pizza and the growth of its raised rim, were characterized by visual colorimetric analysis, while the time course of their corresponding temperatures was monitored using an infrared thermal scanning camera. The maximum temperature of the pizza bottom was equal to 100 ± 9 °C, while that of the upper pizza side ranged from 182 °C to 84 or 67 °C in the case of white pizza, tomato pizza, or margherita pizza, respectively, mainly because of their diverse moisture content and emissivity. The pizza weight loss was nonlinearly related to the average temperature of the upper pizza side. The formation of brown or black colored areas on the upper and lower sides of baked pizza was detected with the help of an electronic eye. The upper side exhibited greater degrees of browning and blackening than the lower one, their maximum values being about 26 and 8%, respectively, for white pizza. These results might help develop a specific modelling and monitoring strategy to reduce variability and maximize the quality attributes of Neapolitan pizza.