Abstract
The knowledge of skilled cooks at the Shimonoseki fish market was analyzed to develop a quality evaluation system for dressed Tiger puffer (Migaki). A total of 100 fish dressed by the cooks were graded into five classes to determine what aspects of the surface color, freshness and the texture of the fish the cooks use for evaluation. Analysis of the appearance evaluation by the cooks, combined with information on fish coloration and meat freshness, indicated that the cooks focused on the color at four points on the surface of the fish. It was also clarified that the evaluation by the cooks accurately corresponded to the freshness of the fish meat. A statistical model was then constructed and evaluated using the colors of these measuring points as four explanatory variables, and the results corresponded with the assessments by the cooks with more than 70% certainty. The results confirm the validity of the proposed method, which incorporates the knowledge of skilled cooks in the design of a dressed Tiger puffer quality evaluation system.
