The effect of different methods of mango drying assisted by a pulsed electric field on chemical and physical properties

摘要

This study presents the impact of pulsed electric fields (PEF) on the selected propertiesof mango dried with hot air and vacuum techniques. PEF pretreatment hasbeen performed at 1 and 3 kJ/kg followed by drying. The results showed that PEFpretreated dried sample exhibited lower rehydration capacity for both convection orvacuum drying by up to 16 and 21%, respectively. Moreover, the retention of phenoliccompounds in the case of PEF pretreated material was higher than for untreatedby up to 70% in comparison to fresh material. In the case of carotenoids retentionPEF pretreatment yielded the maximum values for 1 kJ/kg and minimum for 3 kJ/kg for all drying methods. The antioxidant capacity of the dried mango samples declinedafter high energy PEF treatment. These indicate that optimization of the PEFpretreatment is needed to avoid “overtreatment” of the product followed by the degradationof the bioactive compounds.Practical application: Despite drying being one of the most popular food preservationand processing methods it can lead to significant loss of quality of the final product.Therefore, food researchers look for new methods to improve drying processand properties of dried food. Pulsed electric field technology belongs to the one ofthe most promising emerging methods capable of improving product quality afterdrying. This study has shown that PEF-assisted drying results in better retention ofdried mango.