Sensory Characteristics and Storage Analysis of Newly Developed Spider Conch Balls from the Spider Conch (Lambis lambis)

Abstract

Street foods, particularly in Asia, are widely consumed and enjoyed by people. Among these street foods, meatballs made from various seafood products, including fish balls, shrimp balls, and squid balls, are particularly popular. Due to the growing demand for these street foods, there is a necessity to innovate and create novel types of meatballs using other seafood products, especially those that are abundant but less utilized. This work focused on developing and standardizing spider conch balls (Lambis lambis) using three different formulations with varying meat and binder ratios: Formulation A (50:50), Formulation B (60:40), and Formulation C (70:30). Sensory evaluation by semi-trained panelists was done to assess the characteristics of the products using the three formulations, including flavor, color, texture (chewiness and juiciness), and overall acceptability. The product with Formulation C emerged as the preferred choice, with the significantly highest overall score during the evaluation (p < 0.05). It was subjected to storage testing and comparison with commercially available squid balls. Additionally, consumer testing was conducted to evaluate the acceptability of the newly developed spider conch balls. Results revealed that the newly developed spider conch balls exhibited significantly greater acceptability (p < 0.05) than the commercially available squid balls. The storage analysis demonstrated that the frozen spider conch balls maintained high to moderate general acceptability scores, making them suitable for consumption for three (3) weeks. This study suggests that spider conch (L. lambis) can be an alternative raw material for preparing seafood meatballs.