ABSTRACT

Trachurus trachurus (Atlantic horse mackerel) was smoked with two different fire woods Di'alium guineensis and Pentaclethra macrohylla and sawdust using a traditional smoking kiln and a constructed sawdust stove sited in the fish farm of Michael Okpara University of agriculture Umudike. The frozen fish sample was weighed, eviscerated and washed properly with clean water. During smoking the temperature of the heat was taken, duration of smoking period was also noted in smoking process. The fish sample was reweighed again after the treatment (smoking). The proximate analysis of the frozen fish and the smoked fish were analysed to access and compare the nutrient composition at the end of the smoking process. Result showed that the moisture content of fish sample smoked with sawdust with 26.6+80.05%,fish sample smoked with Dialiuin guineensis wit/i 25.76+0.05% Pentacleihra macrophylla with 24.5+30.08% and control with 70.26±0.06%, for protein content of fish sample smoked with sawdust with 39.48±0.23%, Dialium guineensis smoked fish sample with 40.58± 0.19% and Pentaciethra inacrophv/la with 42.57±0.23% and the control I 7.27±O.03%. The carbohydrate content of fish sample smoke with sawdust with 4.75±0.26% Dialium guineensis smoked fish sample with 3.80±0.25% Pentaclethra macrophylia with 42.57+ 0.23% and control of 2.21±0.07%, respectively microbial load of the frozen and smoked fish were also analyzed and the result reveals that the load of the external part was higher when compared with the internal part of the fish. The fish sample smoked with Dialium guineensis and Pentaciethra macrophylia had higher value. Based on the sensory evaluation by the taste panelist.