Physical Quality of Chevon Meatballs with Different Levels of Taro Flour Substitution as a Filler

Abstract

Taro tubers potentially serve as functional foods with significant health benefits, due to their abundant oligosaccharides. The substance is a potential raw material in flour production, as a result of their high starch composition of approximately 70%. The purpose of this research, therefore, was to determine the physical properties of chevon meatballs, comprising of various levels of taro substitutes as fillers. The materials involved were the thighs of the meat sample and taro flour. Additional ingredients consisted of ice, tapioca flour, pepper, salt, MSG, egg white, and garlic. Meatballs were produced from chevon with 10% flour as filler, in the form of tapioca and taro, with successive composition ratio of 10:0 (P0), 7.5:2.5 (P1), 5:5 (P2), 2.5:7.5 (P3), and 0:10 (P4). Data assessments were subsequently conducted, using analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results showed that the use of taro flour filler up to a level 10% did not affect the cooking loss of chevon meatballs, with exception in pH, water holding capacity (WHC) and tenderness. Consequently, the addition of filler ratio of 0:10 (tapioca:taro) tended to boost the pH, while reducing the WHC and tenderness. Moreover, the WHC increased by using tapioca and taro flours with a ratio of 5:5 (P2), compared to 7.5:2.5 (P1), 2.5:7.5 (P3), and 0:10 (P4). Furthermore, a considerable improvement in meatball tenderness was observed by the inclusion of P2 filler ratio, compared to utilizing tapioca and taro flours at 2.5:7.5 (P3) and 0:10 (P4). In summary, taro flour was feasibly applied in chevon meatball preparation up to a level of 5%, while retaining the physical properties.