Exploring Cricket Protein Processing: Aroma Generation, Physicochemical Properties, and Sensory Characterization

Edible insects represent a sustainable alternative food source due to their lower consumption of resources for production compared to traditional animal livestock, and desirable nutritional quality in terms of protein, lipids, vitamins, and minerals content. Although entomophagy is practiced by approximately 2 billion people around the world, consumer acceptance of food products containing edible insects in western countries is seriously limited due possibly to various factors, including lack of appropriateness and sensory attributes. The combination of mimicking known food items and the development of savory foods has been identified as a possible method to increase familiarity and therefore the acceptance of insect-based products. The strategies and techniques that have been studied for the enhancement of the taste/aroma compounds during the processing of food products containing edible insects include thermal and biochemical processing in order to promote the induction of formation of flavor compounds mostly through the generation of Maillard Reaction and Strecker degradation products. Thermal processing of unhydrolyzed cricket protein in solutions at 70 °C and 90 °C in presence of reducing sugars does not significantly improve its volatile profile. The application of acid hydrolysis of cricket protein represents a straightforward, practical, and rapid technique to produce aroma compounds from a substrate with that composition. Cricket protein hydrolysates possess a profile of volatiles and organic acid that might serve as a source of flavor agents expanding the applicability of insect meals for food purposes. In the present study, under the specified hydrolysis conditions of acid concentration and ratio (CP:A), the formation of volatiles and organic acids may be attributed to potential mechanisms such as sugar degradation, lipid oxidation, Maillard reaction, Strecker degradation, and thermal degradation of amino acids. Cricket protein hydrolysates possess a profile of volatiles and organic acid that might serve as a source of flavor agents expanding the applicability of insect meals for food purposes. Through a focus group and the application of Check-All-That-Apply (CATA) technique, an exploratory lexicon was developed that allowed for the identification of aroma attributes (34 descriptors) defining the aroma of the hydrolysates and confirmed their similarity to commercial seasonings.