Developing An Improved Home-Level Technology For The Production Of A Protein-Enriched Nigerian Local Snack, Tofu Pie: Simulated "Meat Pie"

Maize flours and dough were variously prepared from whole, decorticated, and alkaline-cooked maize grains. Other flour types include soycorn milk residue and wheat flours. All the flour types were made into base for pie-type preparations. Tofu (soybean curd) cubes were mixed with local pepper and onion condiments, fried, and were used for pie filling. The various pie types namely WFTP, DMFTP, WMFTP, WMADTP, DMADTP, SRFTP and MPI-MPVI (MPs) represent pie types made from base using wheat, decorticated, whole maize flours, wet and dry masa doughs, soycorn residue flour, and market pies 1 to VI, respectively. MP1 was used as control for sensory evaluation. The protein content of the maize-based pies ranged from 19.54 to 34.13% and was significantly higher (P < 0.01) than the range of protein content 11.67-15.53% for the MPs. Except for WMFTP, all other experimental pie types gave higher in vitro digestibility (IVD) percent than the MPs. The sensory evaluation scores showed that none of the experimental pies were rejected but their scores were significantly lower (P < 0.05) than those for the MPs in all the parameters measured. Pie types WFTP, DMFTP, and WMFTP were significantly higher (P < 0.05) than the other experimental pies in all the sensory attributes measured. The consumption of tofu pies developed in this study, using the improved home-level technology described, will help to reduce malnutrition consequent to the high protein content and nutritional attributes of the improved local snack.