Vol. 12, Issue 10 (2023)

Author(s):
Athira M Nair and PR Geetha Lekshmi

Abstract:
Annonaceous fruits are one of the most nutritious crops with great potential to develop value-added products. Freeze drying is a preservation technique to retain the nutrients in the fruit pulp during the drying process and provides the finished product with excellent stability during the storage period. The present research was focused to develop the freeze-dried fruit pulp from Annona species (Annona squamosa, Annona reticulata and Annona muricata) and evaluated its soluble sugars and acidity during ambient storage for 90 days. The result of the study revealed that total soluble solids, acidity, total sugar and reducing sugar content of all the freeze-dried pulp of Annona species decreased during 90 days of storage. It was observed that the highest values of TSS (25.75⁰Brix), total sugar (24.94%) and reducing sugar content (21.24%) were exhibited in freeze-dried Annona squamosa pulp, whereas the highest acidity (1.25%) was found in freeze-dried Annona muricata pulp at the end of 90 days of ambient storage. Hence, freeze drying is the best dehydration method to preserve the nutrient parameters of Annona fruit pulp during storage.