Effect of pre‐drying methods on the quality aspects of explosive puffed dried beef snack

Hot air drying (HAD), freeze drying (FD), and microwave drying (MD) pretreatments were applied under different conditions to determine the effect of the pre‐drying methods on the explosive puffing drying (EPD) of beef samples. All samples were pre‐dried up to 30%, 40%, and 50% moisture contents (wb), and three different pre‐drying conditions were treated (60–75–90°C for HAD, 0.1–0.15–0.2 mbar for FD, and 180–360–540 W for MD), and EPD was applied at constant conditions until the final moisture content. The protein contents of all the samples were high, and TBARS values were below 2 mg/kg sample. FD + EPD combined application has provided lower water activity, more crispy, less hard, more expanded, and higher rehydration capacity. The most appropriate pre‐drying method was found to be FD with the conditions of 0.1 mbar and 30% moisture content [wb]) prior to EPD to obtain beef snacks having a high protein content, crispy texture, and acceptable color. Practical Application Long drying times, noncrispy texture, and low sensorial quality are the main problems in dried meat products. EPD is a novel texturizing and drying method providing a crispy texture in a relatively short time by improving product quality. In recent years, different pre‐drying methods have been applied to improve the effect of EPD method. An acceptable beef snack with high protein content, crispy texture, and higher volumetric expansion was obtained for the first time by combining FD + EPD in this research. The method can be applicable to scale‐up studies. Thus, well‐texturized, highly nutritious, and acceptable dried beef snacks, cheese snacks, vegan products, and fortified products with some vitamins and bioactives can be produced by this method in relatively short time with high quality.