Changes in the lipid fraction of king mackerel pan fried in coconut oil and cooked in coconut milk

•Reduction of 21% in the total EPA + DHA in king mackerel pan fried in coconut oil.•Reduction of 38% in the total EPA + DHA in king mackerel cooked in coconut milk.•Total saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids increased after heating treatment.•The cooking did not cause alterations in cholesterol contents.•Only 7β-hydroxycholesterol was identified in the samples.

The influence of cooking on the nutritional value of king mackerel when cooked in coconut milk or pan fried in coconut oil was verified from the alterations in the fatty acid content; formation of cholesterol oxides and the nutritional quality indices of the lipids. Cooking in coconut milk caused an 11.6% reduction in the protein content and 28.3% reduction in the ash content. The lipid content increased after cooking (253%) and frying (198%) causing an increase in the caloric value. The total saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids of the cooked king mackerel increased 462% and 248%, respectively, whereas these increases were 418% and 130%, respectively, for the fried king mackerel. There were reductions of 21% and 38% in the total EPA + DHA of the pan fried and cooked samples, respectively, as compared to the fresh king mackerel. The heat treatment did not cause alterations in cholesterol content.

Graphical abstractDownload high-res image (249KB)Download full-size image