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Note : 11 Source : Fish-based Food Item : Pekasam Nature Of Food : Pekasam is a fermented product of fresh water fishes. It is a popular traditional fish condiment. Cleaned fish was mixed with 20% salt and left overnight followed by the addition of 20% carbohydrate then undergone anaerobic fermentation for one month. Acid lactic bacteria acted on the sugars from the break down of carbohydrate to produce lactic acid, which reduce pH of the fish to 4.0 – 5.8. A fast method...

Note : 6 Source : Fish-based Food Item : Fish sauce / Budu Nature Of Food : Budu is a thick dark coloured sauce obtained by fermenting 2 -3 parts of anchovies with 1 part of salt for 3 -12 months. Higher salt will slow down the fermentation process but produce a product with a better flavour and odour. The pasty semi-fluid mass obtained after fermentation is mixed and boiled with palm sugar (30%) and tamarind (10%) before bottling. The product should contain not less...

Note : 1 Source : Fruit-based Food Item : Fruit sauces Nature Of Food : Suitable fruits for hot sauce were pineapple, papaya,banana, manggo and soursop. Other ingredients used were chilli, acid, sugar, starch, garlic, gum, salt and water. The sauce is suitable as a dipping sauce for fried fish or fried chicken and also can be utilized as an ingredient in rojak sauce or in preparing savoury dishes like asam pedas, sambal tumis, sweet sour dishes, ginger chicken, cube fish and crispy bean curd...

Name/Botanical Name : Watermelon / Citrullus vulgaris Nature : The watermelon has either deep red or bright yellow flesh. Chilled watermelon juice is a soothing thirst-quencher. The fruit has high contents of vitamins and essential minerals. Name/Botanical Name : Durian / Durio zibethinus Nature : Commonly refered to as the “King of Malaysian fruits”, the durian is sought and savoured with passion by lovers of the fruit. Its smooth and creamy yellow or white pulp is strongly...

SUMMARY OF PRIORITY HERBS IN MALAYSIA Name/Scientific Name : Tongkat Ali / Eurycoma longifolia Family : Simaroubaceae Usage : Health tonic for after childbirth, aphrodisiac and antidotes. Products to treat for jaundice, diarrhea and dysentery. Name/Scientific Name : Pegaga / Centella asiatica Family : Umbelliferae Usage : Product for skin care, Health food, Herbal tea. Antioxidant. Name/Scientific Name : Mengkudu / Morinda citrifolia Family : Rubiaceae Usage...

Bread Variety Today the German Bread Register lists 3,100 types of bread. Tomorrow there will be a few more. And yet this 7,500-year-old basic foodstuff only consists of flour, water and yeast. There are two main reasons for the unequalled range of bread varieties in Germany. For centuries the country consisted of many small states, each of which developed its own bread culture. Today only master bakers are allowed to open a bakery, and the master crafts-man’s examination includes baking bread...

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT FOOD ADDITIVES Definition Food additives are substances that are intentionally introduced directly to food to improve quality, presentation (texture, consistency, appearance), flavor, odour, taste and storage life but does not include vitamins and minerals. It also has technological function in the preparation or processing of a food. Food additives should not be confused with contaminants, which are not intentionally added to food. Contaminants include...

GMF DETECTION KIT Introduction Among application of biotechnology to food is generic modification (GM), also known as genetic engineering, genetic manipulation, gene technology or recombinant DNA technology. The collective term “Genetically Modified Organisms” or GMOs is used frequently in regulatory documents and in the scientific literature to describe plants, animals and microorganisms which have had DNA introduced into them by means other than by combination of an egg and a sperm...

DISPOSABLE IMMUNO-SENSOR FOR DETECTION OF ANTIBIOTIC RESIDUES IN LIVESTOCK PRODUCES Introduction Most of the antibiotic products were originally introduced to improve human and animal health. Abuse of these antibiotic can have harmful effects on animal and humans, where it can accumulate in animal tissues and can enter the food chain once the animal is slaughtered. Various regulatory bodies have acted to control the use of these antibiotics in farming and subsequently creating the need for...

KENAF SEED THRESHER Background Kenaf is grown from seed and a large quantity of seed supply is needed for commercial production. Kenaf seed production is labour intensive especially in the harvesting and seed processing aspects. Besides, threshing kenaf seed causes severe skin irritationto the field workers. Mechanization of seed production is needed to overcome some of these constraints. A seed threshing machine is recommended to facilitate smallholders to solve labour problems, reduce...

BAKERY PRODUCTS FROM SWEETPOTATO Background Sweetpotato has long been planted for fresh food market. Processing has been small-scale, catering for the snack food market such as crisps, chip and crackers. Sweetpotato is also used in a variety of traditional cakes and local dessert, and to a limited extent as a thickener in sauces and a ‘body’ to products such as jelly grass and soya bean based drinks. The main flour traded in the world is mainly wheat (98%). Bakery products were developed...

BANANA POWER One of the benefits of living in a tropical country is that we are able to enjoy a bounty of delicious, healthy fruits. Among these many riches of the earth is the brightly coloured, cheery banana. Growing in bunches on a tree, they are easily picked and consumed – just peel and eat. The many different varieties of banana also mean that some can solely be used to create snacks – like the simple by tasty ‘fried banana’ and banana fritters that most of us have had since childhood. But...

FRESH CUT FRUITS Fresh cut fruits is a product ready to be eaten fresh. This product is very convenient to handle and maintains freshness, retains flavor, aroma and its nutritional value. The operations involved in preparing fresh cut fruits are basically depend on the type of fruits and how the fruits are normally being consumed. For fresh cut pineapple the operation involved are cleaning, trimming the crown and peduncle, skin peeling, cutting according to size, immersing in solutions...

WHY EAT MORE FRUITS ? 01) It’s the perfect snack – at any time of day 02) It’s quick and handy 03) It’s really tasty – there’s a favourite for everyone and lots to choose from 04) It’s almost fat free 05) It’s the natural, healthy way to keep hunger at bay 06) It’s good value 07) It’s full of vitamins and minerals 08) It contains micronutrients, phytochemicals and antioxidants 09) It’s high in dietary fibre Recommendation for daily intake of fruit is more than 400 grams per person...

VITAMIN SUPPLEMENTS NOT ANSWER People hoping vitamins can protect their hearts need to eat healthy foods instead of popping pills, said the American Heart Association. A review of studies on whether supplements can reduce heart disease risk shows they have virtually no effect, the group said. “At this time, there is little reason to advice that individuals take antioxidant supplements to reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease,” said Penny Kris-Etherton, a professor of nutrition at...