Report of Practicals on Fruit and Vegetable Preservation.

Babu R. Pandey (Student ID 318294) There were four practical sessions as a part of Food and Vegetable Technology subject. Students were divided into three groups. We, as Group C, conducted the following practical activities: preparation of sauerkraut, candying pineapple, blanching test for potato, and preservation of potato by freezing and dehydration. Aims The practicals had the following aims.

To understand the biochemical processes and changes during fermentation of cabbage. To observe the changes in moisture, water activity, total solids, sugar absorption and other parameters by pineapple during sugar preservation.

To determine the appropriate blanching method and time for enzyme-inactivation of potato.

To evaluate the organoleptic qualities of air and liquid N frozen potato after various methods of blanching.

Materials and Methods Sauerkraut was prepared according to the handout provided (3.5% salt added). However, we did not process it for canning because it was gone off-flavour. In case of pineapple, we did not dry and paint the fruit for candy preparation. We did not conduct and compare the fruit with the commercial sample because our sample had developed molds. All other procedures were followed according to the instructions provided. Results Sauerkraut The changes in total solids, pH and titrable acidity (lactic acid) have been shown in Figure 1. Both the titrable acidity (TA) and total solids (TS) increased noticeably at the end of the process, although there were minor changes in the beginning. pH was measured in the 2nd and the 3rd week

only and there was a insignificant change during this period. The bacterial colony in petri dish showed white raised spots (Figure 2). Circular cells were observed under microscopic examination after gram staining.

Figure 1. Changes in titrable acidity (Lactic acid), pH and total solids (TS) of sauerkraut solution.

Figure 2. Bacterial colony of sauerkraut solution. Pineapple Candy

The sugar syrup lost weight during the process of sugar preservation of pineapple. Figure 3 presents the observed average weights and the expected weights of the sugar. The average weights of the two jars have been used and the expected weights are calculated based on no movement of water and solute in the syrup. A slight increase in weight was observed in the 2 nd

week but syrup weights were lower than the expected weights in the successive weeks. Similar declines in TS of the syrup were observed (Figure 4). Average values from the two jars were used to draw the graph. The average TS declined from 29.7% to 22.3% from the 1 st week to the 2nd week, from 48.4 % (after sugar addition) in the 2nd week to 43% in the 3rd week and finally from 76.5% (after sugar addition again) in the 3rd week to 57% in the 4th week. Moisture content of the fruit declined rapidly from 85.9% in the first week to 39% in the 4th week, however, there a small change in water activity of the fruit (Table 1).

Expected wt Observed wt

Figure 3. Weight loss in sugar syrup during sugar preservation of pineapple. The average weights of the two jars have been used. The expected weights have been calculated assuming no movement of water and solute in the solution. The vertical axis shows weight in gram.
35% sugar addition 25% sugar addition

Figure 4. Changes in total solids (TS) of the sugar syrup during sugar preservation of pineapple. The vertical axix shows the TS%. Table 1. Changes in moisture content and water activity of the pineapple during sugar preservation. Week Moisture content (%) Water Activity Week1 85.9 0.92 Week4 39.0 0.85

Blanching Efficiency (Potato) Potato samples blanched for 20-90 seconds in boiling water were extremely coloured when tested for enzyme activities (Figure 5). Blanching for 110 and 120 seconds were less coloured than the previous treatments but were still unacceptable. The treatment for 150 seconds showed acceptable retention of colour. Preservation by Freezing Irrespective of the freezing method, unblanched samples had undesirable colour (browning), smell (oily) and texture (flexible and juicy) (Table 2). Similar undesirable attributes were observed in samples blanched in boiling water for 10 seconds. Steam-blanching for 5 minutes and boiling water-blanching for 15 minutes were also unacceptable because of over-cooked flavor. The best blanching time (150 seconds in boiling water, which was determined in the earlier experiment) was best for freeze preservation. The quality traits (colour, smell and texture) were better retained by this method of blanching before freezing. Liquid N freezing method was better than air freezing. Dehydration Unblanched potato sample lost its quality traits (appearance) upon drying. It was dark black and tissue was shrunken badly (Table 3). Both the hot water blanching (90C) and steam blanching for 2.5 minutes, and dipping in 0.3% sodium bisulphate solution for 3 minutes without heat treatment before dehydration were insufficient to retain quality of potato. The colour of the material after dehydration was still black or black and white, and shrunken appearance. The combination of hot water treatment for 2.5 minutes and dipping in sodium bisulphate solution for 1 minute was the best of all the treatments given. The colour of the dehydrated sample was attractive and not much shrunken.

Figure 5. Appearance of potato after blanching in hot water for various durations and tests for peroxidase and catalase enzyme activities. The figures below are the blanching time (in seconds) in boiling water.

Table 2. Organoleptic characteristics of variously blanched potato samples after air and liquid N freezing. * blanching in boiling water. Unblanched Color Air freeze Brown on one side and lighter brown on other side Orange brown, uniform Oily Strong oily Flexible, juicy 10 sec* Black Steam 5 min Yellow 150 sec* Attractive yellow 15 min* Light yellow

N freeze

Black one side, white the other side Bitter smell Relatively less smell Soft jelly

White

Yellowish white Raw potato Slightly cooked Juicy, soft, flexible Dry, hard

Smell

Air freeze N freeze

Strong cooked Slightly cooked Soft juicy but hard to break Slightly juicy, slightly flexible

Very cooked Juicy, soft

Texture

Air freeze

N freeze

Relatively Relatively hard hard and less juicy

Table 3. Quality of dehydrated potato samples after various methods of blanching. Treatment A. Hot water blanch at 900C for 2.5 min and cool immediately B. Steam blanch for 2.5 min and cool immediately C. Dip the material in 0.3% w/w sod bisulphate solution for 3 mins D. Treatment A + dip in 0.3% sod bisulphate solution for 1 min E. Control Observation Dark yellow, slightly shrunken, curled Black, more shrunken and curled than A Black and white spots, curled and shrunken Good and attractive colour Dark black, smoky, very shrunken

Discussion Sauerkraut Sauerkraut is a lactic acid fermentation process started by Leuconostoc mesenteroides and later taken up by Lactobacilli (Lactobacillus plantarum and L. cucumeris). L. mesenteroides are heterofermentative producing lactic acid, acetic acid and CO2. The acidity created and CO2 evolved prevents the material from other undesirable microorganisms (Battcock and Azam-Ali 1998). In our lab experiment, LA was increased very slowly and reached slightly above 1% (Figure 1). It also developed off-flavour at the end. High salt concentration (3.5%) used and temperature conditions could be responsible for the poor fermentation. A temperature of 210C (18-220C) is desirable for cocci and above this range favors the growth of lactobacilli (Battcock and Azam-Ali 1998). The temperature in the lab was not controlled. Lower salt concentration (0.5-1.5%) are better for sauerkraut process (Penas and others 2010). Higher salt concentrations inhibit the activities of desirable organisms but the undesirable organisms can tolerate higher salt concentrations (Battcock and Azam-Ali 1998). It seems that the salt concentration and temperature conditions inhibited the growth of lactobacilli in our sample. Sauerkraut is prepared industrially by using starter cultures to ensure a uniform product quality by controlling the fermentation process (Wiander and Ryhanen 2005). Starter cultures of Leuconostoc mesenteroides, Lactobacillus plantarum and Lactobacillus lactis can be used (Plengvidhya and others 2004; Johanningsmeier and others 2007). Fake sauerkrauts with added acetic acid are also available in market. Pineapple Candying a fruit is basically sugar preservation. Highly concentrated sugar syrup is used to take out moisture from the fruit and increase soluble solids content at least to 65%. There is a high osmotic pressure in the tissue which protects from microbial deterioration (DeGregorio and Cante 1992). The loss of weight and TS of the sugar syrup, and water activity and moisture content of fruit was due to the movement of solutes in to the fruit and water out of the fruit. There was mold on the top of syrup because there was a sufficient air space above the syrup level.

Blanching of potato The blanching times are based on inactivation of enzymes of the product. Blanching time varies between 2 and 12 minutes depending on the temperature and the size of the material. The temperature ranges from 93 to 100C (Talburt and Kueneman 1987). The blanching has been found to be an efficient way to reduce acrylamide content in potato crisps (Sotome and others 2009). In our experiment, blanching potato in boiling water for 150 seconds was found the minimum time required. Similar results have been found by other researchers. Mukherjee and Chattopadhyay (2007) determined 165 seconds as optimum time of peroxidase inactivation in potato with boiling water treatment. Freezing Freezing is the quick removal of heat from the product. Hot water blanching for 150 seconds prior to freezing helped keep the organoleptic characteristics of frozen potato better than other treatments. Hot water treatment is better than steam to inactivate peroxidase (Selman 1987). Poor quality of air frozen samples was probably due to slower rate of freezing by cool air than the liquid N. The rate of freezing has significant impact on product quality. Slower rate of cooling lets formation of larger ice crystals in the product which destroys the quality (Heldman and Hartel 1997). Dehydration
Unblanched potato showed very undesirable characteristics after dehydration (Table 3) due to enzymatic reactions. Hot water blanching (2.5 min), steam-blanching (2.5 min) and dipping in 0.3% sodium bisulphate solution prior to dehydration also did not give satisfactory quality because of insufficient enzyme inactivation. The potato sample given hot water treatment (2.5 min) plus sodium bisulphate dip retained better color. Dipping in sodium bisulphate solution can replace hot water blanching. Potato requires to be dipped in a solution of 0.5-1% solution for appropriate inactivation of enzymes (Mapson and Wager 1961). Failure to retain color by sodium bisulphate dip in our experiment was probably due to lower concentration of the solution. Blanching in bisulphate solution helps retain color than only heat blanching. Inyang and Ike (1998) reported that blanching with hot water plus bisulphate solution prior to dehydration retained better color in okra.

Conclusion The sauerkraut was poorly fermented and did not get proper lactic acid concentration. I think the kraut was just in the first phase of fermentation by cocci and did not enter the second phase dominated by lactobacilli. The temperature conditions and salt concentration (3.5%) were inhibitive for lactobacilli. The poor acidity favored spoilage organism which developed offflavor. Controlled temperatures (21C) and lower salt concentration would better for natural fermentation. The pineapple also did not get sufficiently sugar (at least 65%). The final TS of the syrup was 57% which indicates that the TS of the fruit was not high enough. More sugar addition to the syrup was necessary for sufficient uptake of sugar by the fruit. The air space in the jars was responsible for molds which could be solved by proper filling of the jars. The minimum blanching time determined for potato was 150 seconds in boiling water. Our determination was in accordance with finding by other researchers. The blanching determined (150 seconds in boiling water) retained better characteristics of frozen potato. Hot water blanching was better than steam blanching; and liquid N freezing was superior to cool air freezing to retain quality of potato. The best blanching time alone did not give satisfactory quality for dehydrated potato. In addition, chemical treatment (1 min dip in 0.3% sodium bisulphate solution) was required.

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