Development and Sensory Profiling of Flavored Tilanggit (Dried, Split, and Salted Juvenile Tilapia)

With the increase in tilapia farming there are opportunities to explore value-added tilapia products. This study aimed to develop flavored varieties of dried, split, and salted juvenile tilapia, commonly known as "tilanggit," given the staple consumption of dried fish in places like Africa and Asia. Freshly harvested juvenile Nile tilapia fish were gutted, cleaned, deboned, brined, marinated, and dried. Four flavor formulations were developed: no flavor (NF), honey-calamansi (HC), garlic (G), and hot and spicy (HS). Each flavor formulation's sensory attributes, including appearance, aroma, taste, and texture, were assessed using a 5-point Likert scale, where 1 represented "disliked a lot" and 5 represented "liked a lot", with samples being deep-fried in an individual vat of vegetable oil for ~5-10 sec at 150°C. A total of 40 consenting female participants from 19 to 63 years old, from low and middle-income homes who purchase and consume dried fish, were medically screened and used to evaluate the sensory attributes of the flavored dried tilanggit products. The results showed that the G formulation was rated as having the best appearance, aroma, and taste, followed by the NF sample which suggested that the addition of garlic to dried tilanggit significantly enhanced several important sensory attributes. In terms of texture, the NF sample was rated the highest, followed by the G sample. The results indicate statistically significant differences among these four treatments in terms of appearance, taste and texture, (p<0.05) using the Kruskal-Wallis H test. Therefore, it is recommended that garlic be used as a flavor for dried tilanggit products however, honey-calamansi and hot and spicy be improved so they, too, can be used to flavor dried tilanggit to better suit the preferences of different consumers and offer additional choices in the marketplace. Moreover, a sensory evaluation with region-wide and more diversified participants is recommended to assess broader market viability. These results provide insights for tilapia farmers and processors seeking to diversify their product offerings to cater to consumer preferences for flavored dried fish products. Key words: Flavored tilanggit, tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus, fish drying, dried salted fish, tuyông isda