A novel approach to the formulation of an encapsulated bioactive powder from palmyrah (Borassus flabellifer L) fruit pulp for nutraceutical applications
S. Sangeetha, S. Thuraisingam, J.A.E.C. Jayawardane, S. Srivijeindran
Abstract
This study aims to produce spray-dried encapsulated powder from Palmyrah fruit pulp that contains health-promoting bioactive nutrients and desirable product attributes, which can be incorporated into ice cream as a nutraceutical ingredient. The feed formulations, containing the aqueous fraction of Palmyrah fruit pulp (FP), skim milk (SM), and a minimal amount of maltodextrin (MD) & Gum Arabic (GA), were spray dried at an inlet temperature of 170°C. Since four blends with three levels of variation, Taguchi's approach to the L-9 (34) array was used to design the experiments. The formulation (T7) of FP: SM: MD: GA range 45:50:10:2.5 gave the best results regarding physicochemical, functional, and sensory attributes. This matrix was the best formulation for preserving yielding powders with desirable density for packaging (i.e., 46.47% & 0.45 g/cm3), reconstitution properties in water(70.4%) and a good source of antioxidants and stability over storage time (Vita C-8.05mg/100g, total phenolic content-78.30mg GAE/100 g, Radical scavenging activity of 27.08%-73.61%). The test of FTIR confirmed effective encapsulation and interactions among the final coating layer of SM, MD &GA. The sensory evaluation revealed that 5% Powder contained ice cream formulation had the highest overall acceptability score.