Corn chip manufacture

Most manufacturing processes do not detoxify aflatoxin and therefore if the aflatoxins are not detected, products will be marketed. One of the processes used for reducing aflatoxin levels is nixtamalization (alkaline cooking), which is used during the making of corn tortillas, tortilla chips, and corn chips, and gives a 51 to 78% reduction in aflatoxin levels (Torres et al., 2001). 

FIGURE 9.1 Flowchart of industrial processes for the manufacture of table tortillas, corn chips, tortilla chips, and dry masa flour. 

FIGURE 12.4 Flowchart of the manufacturing process of regular and partially defatted corn chips.369... 

The rapid and exponential growth of the production and sales of lime-cooked snacks took place mainly during the last decade of the twentieth century. These snacks rapidly became popular in other areas of the world as well. Today, corn and tortilla chips are manufactured worldwide. Flat tostadas and tortilla chips are tortillas that are deep-fat fried they are widely used as snacks or vehicles for the preparation of fast foods. For their preparation, nixtamal and red-paprika peppers or annatto are stone-ground into a coarse masa. The red- or orange-colored masa is baked into a tortilla and then fried into a tostada. Tostadas are the base for the preparation of a wide array of meals. Sometimes, they are eaten as a snack with lemon juice and sauces. It is very common to consume tostadas with refried beans, cheese, shredded meats, and vegetables such as lettuce, tomato, onions, peppers, and radish. Taco shells are the American version of tostadas, the only difference being that they are usually fried bent (U form) and rarely colored. 

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