Desidratação da jabuticaba e extração simultânea de compostos bioativos empregando hidrodifusão por micro-ondas e gravidade

Abstract

The jabuticaba (Plinia cauliflora (Mart.) Kausel), is a native fruit considered emerging in the country, of dark violet color, is recognized for being a source of bioactive compounds, among them, anthocyanins, responsible for the attractive pigment in its peel, and considered one of the main compounds majorities present in the berry. Its consumption is highly appreciated in natura, however its high perishability limits its commercialization, which favors the creation of innovative products. The husks and seeds are by-products generated by technological processes and discarded as waste, however, in these fractions are mostly bioactive compounds. Fully valuing the berry ensuring the recovery of these compounds, improving extraction processes using green technologies, and creating products become attractive. The objective of this work was to evaluate whether the Microwave Hydrodiffusion and Gravity (HMG) used as a dehydration pre-treatment has the potential to dehydrate jabuticaba preserving the bioactive compounds, and accelerating the final drying process compared to conventional processes. Drying process (freeze drying and oven drying), as well as evaluating whether the application of the extract obtained from the process and the fruit dehydrated by HMG + Oven drying, will have beneficial effects in the application in food, also verifying its global acceptability. We were able to observe that through an experimental design, the optimization of power (525 Watts) and mass (225 grams), allowed a reduction of the moisture content by more than 50% in just 11 minutes, which resulted in a final time of dehydration in an oven for 10 hours and 11 minutes to reach a moisture content of 13%, proving to be advantageous when compared to the freeze drying (127 hours) and oven drying (23 hours and 30 minutes). Furthermore, the pre-treatment with HMG allowed its drying in an oven to maintain the composition of anthocyanins, total phenolics and antioxidant activity, preserving these compounds. The pre-treatment with HMG also provided an aqueous extract that was a source of anthocyanins. Both dehydrated jabuticaba and its aqueous extract were applied and sensorially accepted in formulations of a cereal bar and a carbonated alcoholic cooler, demonstrating that the applicability of the fruit in its entirety is feasible, without the generation of processing residues and organic solvents.