Chemical and Physicochemical Quality Parameters in Carrots Dehydrated by Power Ultrasound

摘要

Preservation of the quality and bioactivity of carrots dehydrated by power ultrasound (US) under different experimental conditions including prior blanching has been evaluated for the first time by measuring the evolution of the Maillard reaction and the changes in soluble sugars, proteins, total polyphenols, antioxidant activity, and rehydration ability. This study also includes a comparison with a freeze-dried sample and data of commercial dehydrated carrots. The synergic effect; of US and temperature (60 °C) increased the dehydration rate of carrots (90% moisture loss in only 75 min) while still providing carrots with a level of 2-furoylmethyl-amino acids significantly lower than that of dehydrated commercial samples. Whereas a decrease in the content of reducing soluble sugars was observed with processing temperature, minor carbohydrates (scyllo- and myoinositol and sedoheptulose) were rather stable, irrespective of the US dehydration parameters. Blanching significantly improved the rehydration ability of US-dehydrated carrots without increasing the Toss of soluble sugars by leaching. As supported by the similarity of most quality indicators studied in both US-treated and freeze-dried carrots, the mild processing conditions employed in US dehydration gave rise to premium quality dehydrated carrots.