274
Quality of Dried Sea Cucumber
The quality of Bêche-de-mer is classified according to the species, size, colour, odour,
moisture content and foreign matter content of the sea cucumber. The larger dried
cucumber is considered higher quality and higher price. The quality dried product
should have a smooth surface, a homogeneous shape, a clean body wall and a pleasant
odour (McElroy 1990). Improper processing methods can cause nutrient losses in the
product. Ozer et al. (2004) reported that the nutritional composition of sea cucumber
(Holothuria scabra) processed by two different methods was affected by the processing method. In this study, sea cucumbers harvested in different months were processed in two ways. The first method was gutting by cutting the anus, then squeezing
the body, removing the viscera. The second method was to remove the viscera by
cutting along the length of the body. Samples prepared in both ways were boiled in
clean sea water for 45 min and then immersed in fresh water. All samples were boiled
the same way a second time. The collected samples were dried at 37 °C for 1 day and
then at 70 °C for 2 days. Different boiling temperatures have been reported to affect
the collagen of sea cucumber. Collagen is the main structural component of the major
edible part of sea cucumber, thus changes of collagen during cooking will affect the
physicochemical properties of the whole product (Dong et al. 2011).
Since BDM is subjected to multi-step processing involving multiple cooking,
salting, and drying, the texture and nutritional composition of the product may vary
during processing (Ram 2017).
4.3.4.4 Smoking of Sea Cucumber
Smoking sea cucumber and other food materials that is initially intended to prolong
the product durability has developed to obtain certain appearance and taste of the
food material. Several studies have indicated that smoking is a preserving method
that does not only increase the durability but also can give desired taste and colour
of the smoked product due to the presence of phenolic and carbonyl compounds
(Salindeho 2017).
Smoking is not a common method for sea cucumbers. If salting or drying cannot
be done, smoke curing is traditionally used. Smoking process of sea cucumbers are
carried out after evisceration and cutting. Eviscerated and cut products are salted
before boiling and smoking (Ram et al. 2014).
References
Afzal TM, Abe T (2000) Simulation of moisture changes in barley during far infrared radiation
drying. Comput Electron Agric 26:137–145
Al Azad S, Shaleh SRM, Siddiquee S (2017) Comparison of fatty acid and proximate composition between Holothuria edulis and Holothuria scabra collected from coastal water of Sabah,
Malaysia. Adv Biosci Biotechnol 8:91–103
4 Echinoderms
Quality of Dried Sea Cucumber
The quality of Bêche-de-mer is classified according to the species, size, colour, odour,
moisture content and foreign matter content of the sea cucumber. The larger dried
cucumber is considered higher quality and higher price. The quality dried product
should have a smooth surface, a homogeneous shape, a clean body wall and a pleasant
odour (McElroy 1990). Improper processing methods can cause nutrient losses in the
product. Ozer et al. (2004) reported that the nutritional composition of sea cucumber
(Holothuria scabra) processed by two different methods was affected by the processing method. In this study, sea cucumbers harvested in different months were processed in two ways. The first method was gutting by cutting the anus, then squeezing
the body, removing the viscera. The second method was to remove the viscera by
cutting along the length of the body. Samples prepared in both ways were boiled in
clean sea water for 45 min and then immersed in fresh water. All samples were boiled
the same way a second time. The collected samples were dried at 37 °C for 1 day and
then at 70 °C for 2 days. Different boiling temperatures have been reported to affect
the collagen of sea cucumber. Collagen is the main structural component of the major
edible part of sea cucumber, thus changes of collagen during cooking will affect the
physicochemical properties of the whole product (Dong et al. 2011).
Since BDM is subjected to multi-step processing involving multiple cooking,
salting, and drying, the texture and nutritional composition of the product may vary
during processing (Ram 2017).
4.3.4.4 Smoking of Sea Cucumber
Smoking sea cucumber and other food materials that is initially intended to prolong
the product durability has developed to obtain certain appearance and taste of the
food material. Several studies have indicated that smoking is a preserving method
that does not only increase the durability but also can give desired taste and colour
of the smoked product due to the presence of phenolic and carbonyl compounds
(Salindeho 2017).
Smoking is not a common method for sea cucumbers. If salting or drying cannot
be done, smoke curing is traditionally used. Smoking process of sea cucumbers are
carried out after evisceration and cutting. Eviscerated and cut products are salted
before boiling and smoking (Ram et al. 2014).
References
Afzal TM, Abe T (2000) Simulation of moisture changes in barley during far infrared radiation
drying. Comput Electron Agric 26:137–145
Al Azad S, Shaleh SRM, Siddiquee S (2017) Comparison of fatty acid and proximate composition between Holothuria edulis and Holothuria scabra collected from coastal water of Sabah,
Malaysia. Adv Biosci Biotechnol 8:91–103
4 Echinoderms