Effects of superheated steam (SHS) temperature (120, 150, 180, 220°C) and time (2, 5, 8, 10 min) on product quality attributes of snack-type ginseng chips were studied. Ginseng chips dried at faster rate under a higher SHS temperature. Higher SHS temperature resulted in ginseng chips with lower moisture content and water activity. After SHS treatment, lightness (L values) and redness (a values) of ginseng chips decreased significantly whereas yellowness (b values) of those increased. Although crude saponin content in ginseng chips reduced slightly after SHS treatment, chips treated at 150°C for 5 min had the highest saponin retention among samples. Scanning electron microscope analysis revealed that SHS treatment cause the shrinkage at the surface first, forming compressed cell layers. As treatment proceeded, pores and cavities were formed internally, resulting porous structure. These results suggested that SHS treatment shows great promise in production of snack-type ginseng chips by reducing drying time without any quality deterioratio

• Jae-Eun Choi(Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Collage of Natural Science, Kyonggi University)
• Young-A Chung(Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Collage of Natural Science, Kyonggi University)
• Sun-Young Choi(Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Collage of Natural Science, Kyonggi University)
• Yoon-Hee Lee(Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Collage of Natural Science, Kyonggi University)
• Jae-Kwon Lee(Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Collage of Natural Science, Kyonggi University)