How to Extrusion Cooking

What You Need to Know

Extrusion cooking involves forcing a mixture of ingredients through a die, typically at temperatures between 140°C and 180°C and pressures of up to 100 bar, leading to the formation of Maillard reaction products and potentially acrylamide.

Steps

1. 1.

   Breakfast cereals (United States): Creates expanded, crisp texture and develops toasted flavors

2. 2.

   Pasta shapes (Italy): Provides uniform structure and cooking properties

3. 3.

   Textured vegetable protein (Japan): Produces meat-like fibrous texture

The Science

Primary Reaction

Maillard reaction

Common Mistakes