Development of fiber-enriched 3D printed snacks from alternative foods: A study on button mushroom

This study focuses on the development of fiber-enriched snacks from mushroom, an alternative food ingredient, using 3D food printing. The printability of the material supply was optimized considering varying levels of mushroom powder (MP) (5, 10, 15, 20, and 25% w/w) in combination with wheat flour (WF). The effect of variations in process variables such as printing speed (200, 400, 600, 800, and 1000 mm/min) and nozzle diameter (1.28 and 0.82 mm) was studied. It was possible to fabricate 3D printed constructs with good stability using the formulation containing 20% MP at 800 mm/min printing speed using a 1.28 mm diameter nozzle, 300 rpm extrusion motor speed at 4 bar pressure, with printing precision of 78.13% and extrusion rate of 0.383 g/min. Further, the conditions for post-processing of the 3D printed constructs were optimized. Microwave cooking at 800 W for 10 min gave better physicochemical properties to 3D printed samples with shrinkage of around 5.43% after post-processing. Sensory attributes of the spiced 3D printed snack were more acceptable than sweet-flavored counterparts. This works provides insights for the development of foods from sustainable alternative food sources using 3D printing technology, particularly for personalized nutrition.