Pre-treatments such as cooking, natural fermentation and partial drying were applied to cassava roots, aimed at obtaining edible cassava chips. The sensory evaluation was based on the acceptance and appearance of the chips, using the varieties IAC Mantiqueira and IAC 576.70. Thirty potential consumers of the product were selected based on their availability and interest. A 7-point hedonic scale was used, all the judges evaluating all the samples using a randomised block design. The results showed sensory acceptance of both the pre-cooked and non pre-cooked (control) chips, with means of 5.1 (liked slightly) for IAC Mantiqueira and 6.0 (liked moderately) for IAC 576.70. The pre-fermented chips of both varieties were rejected. The agreeable attributes most cited by the judges were: "cassava flavour", "crispness" and "texture". The disagreeable attributes most cited were "hard texture", "lack of cassava flavour" and "oily taste". The appearance of the chips from both varieties was considered adequate, with slightly preferred to the IAC 576.70, with the exception of those cooked for 8 minutes and the fermented samples, which were rejected. The yellow colour of the IAC 576.70 cassava pulp may have influenced the acceptance of these chips. The proximate compositions and fibre contents of the in natura cassava roots and the fat contents of the chips, are also presented.
cassava; sensory evaluation; processing; proximate composition
