Acta Scientiarum Polonorum Technologia Alimentaria

Background. A susceptor is a material that can absorb electromagnetic energy and convert it to heat more rapidly than food materials, effectively transforming a microwave oven into a conventional oven. This study used a new nano-composite ceramic as a microwave susceptor to bake cupcakes and investigated its effects on texture characteristics, as well as comparing this method with baking in a conventional oven and the use of a microwave without a susceptor.
Materials and methods. The nano-composite susceptor was utilized to bake cupcakes at various operational power levels (150, 300, 450, and 600 W). The study examined the impact of using a susceptor on the rate of baking, temperature, and texture attributes. A comparison was made between the use of a microwave with a susceptor, the use of a microwave without a susceptor at the same power level, and conventional baking at various temperatures (140, 160, 180, and 200°C).
Results. The susceptor has a higher rate of microwave absorption and heat conversion than cupcakes. Heat is primarily transmitted from the susceptor to the cupcake through conduction. A significant difference in detectable temperature between the sample and the susceptor resulted in accelerated heat transfer. This also yielded the highest rate of baking among the three methods. Moreover, the surface temperature of the cupcake increased with power during baking, and the final surface temperature of the cupcake baked using the microwave susceptor was similar to that of conventionally baked cupcakes. Baking using the susceptor led to a reduction in hardness and chewiness, and an increase in springiness, cohesiveness, and resilience. Furthermore, the cupcakes baked using the susceptor had hardness and chewiness values similar to conventionally baked ones. The use of a microwave susceptor led to an increase in crispiness compared to cupcakes baked without a susceptor, and the crispiness value was close to that obtained with conventional baking.
Conclusions. The use of a microwave susceptor led to an improvement in cupcake texture, resulting in a texture that was close to that obtained with conventional baking. Overall, microwave baking with a susceptor is the most suitable baking method for cakes due to the high surface temperature, cohesiveness, and springiness obtained using this method, and also the minimal processing time, hardness, and chewiness.