ISHS Acta Horticulturae 741: I International Symposium on Fresh Food Quality Standards: Better Food by Quality and Assurance
YIELD, FRUIT QUALITY AND TECHNOLOGICAL PARAMETERS OF BOTTLE GOURD (LAGENARIA SICERARIA (MOLINA) STANDLEY) FOR FROZEN AND 'READY TO USE' PRODUCTS |
| Authors: | N. Calabrese, G. Damato |
| Keywords: | fertilisation, processing, blanching, panel test, sensorial evaluation |
| Abstract:
The bottle gourd is a minor crop cultivated in southern Italy. The increase of consumption could come from the improving of cultural techniques and processing methods, particularly from the frozen and the ‘ready to use products’ (RTUP). The aim of this research is to evaluate the influence of N fertilisation on yield and quality of fruits and the suitability to prepare frozen slices and RTUP. Two year trials were carried out in southern Italy; in both years different rates of N were spread to evaluate the effects on yield and fruits quality; the fruits were harvested at marketable stage. To set the technological parameters for deep freezing, slices 1 cm thick were blanched for different time and then deep frozen. To obtain RTUP, fresh slices 1 cm thick were dipped for 90 seconds in ascorbic or citric acid solution at 0.2-0.5 and 1% concentration and stored in sealed plastic bags at 4°C for 15 days. Colorimetric measurements and panel test were made on fresh, stored and frozen product. Data were represented by QDA profiles. In the first year highest marketable fruit yields were observed with 100 and 150 N rates; whereas the mean weight of fruit, the unmarketable yield per plant and per hectare were higher with 150 kg•ha-1 of N compared to the other N rates. Results were confirmed in the second year trial. Blanching treatments influenced the slices colour and the sensorial traits; frozen slices 90 seconds blanched and stored up to 6 months were more appreciated than others. In the RTUP significant changes in colour did not appear for 6-day-stored samples; while differences were observed for longer storage; these results were confirmed by panel test. | |
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