Properties of 3D printed dough and optimization of printing parameters

Customization of food using the three-dimensional (3D) printing technique is an extremely convenient and healthy way to cook food with maximum utilization of materials, and consequently, this technique has received considerable attention from the public in recent years. In this study, we explored the effect of material composition on the quality of 3D-printed food using wheat flour, freeze-dried mango powder, olive oil and water. Results showed that without adding the freeze-dried mango powder and olive oil, the best printing quality was obtained with a flour-to-water ratio of 5:3. When 2% of the total mass of olive oil was added, the best printing quality was obtained for a flour:water:olive oil ratio of 55:2.75:30. The optimum compressive pressure, needle velocity, needle diameter and internal filling ratio yielding the best printing quality were 600 kPa, 6 mm/s, 0.58 mm and 50%, respectively. The food samples produced using these optimum parameters exhibited multiple merits including well-organized packing structure, clear internal texture profile and a smaller total deformation.