Quality Characteristics and Frozen Storage Stability of Grass Carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) Fish Fingers: A Comparative Evaluation of Fried and Baked Products

Abstract

This study investigated the quality characteristics and frozen storage stability of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) fish fingers, including a comparison of fried and baked products. Fish fingers prepared from minced grass carp meat, with a meat yield of 34.21 ± 2.1%, contained 65.70 ± 1.9% moisture, 17.06 ± 1.1% crude protein, 3.14 ± 0.9% crude fat and 2.20 ± 0.6% ash. During storage at −20°C for 180 days, moisture decreased to 61.59 ± 0.8%, accompanied by a relative increase in the other proximate components. Quality deterioration remained gradual, with TVBN increasing from 4.24 ± 0.4 to 9.91 ± 0.8 mg%, peroxide value from 6.68 ± 0.9 to 10.16 ± 0.8 mmol O₂/kg fat, and FFA from 2.68 ± 0.2 to 8.03 ± 0.6%, indicating limited lipid hydrolysis and oxidation during frozen storage. The total plate count decreased from 2.67 × 10³ to 0.089 × 10³ CFU/g, while sensory evaluation showed good acceptability after 180 days, with an overall acceptability score of 4.0/5.0. Comparison of the cooking methods showed that baked fish fingers had lower crude fat (13.75 ± 1.20%), TVBN (6.37 ± 0.80 mg%), peroxide value (7.54 ± 0.70 mmol O₂/kg fat) and FFA (3.28 ± 0.30%) than fried fingers, which contained 16.02 ± 1.10% fat. Baked fingers also achieved an overall sensory score of 5.0. These findings demonstrate that grass carp is suitable for value-added fish finger production with good frozen storage stability, while baking provides a lower-fat preparation method while retaining high sensory acceptability. The product therefore has potential for convenient ready-to-cook applications and improved utilisation of grass carp through value addition.