Cloud stabilization and characterization of passion fruit juice

Abstract

Passion fruit juice is a non-fermented beverage obtained from the edible part of Passiflora edulis. Passion fruits are widely consumed due to their pleasant flavor/aroma, acidity and are well recognized for their nutritive value in terms of minerals, vitamins and other bioactive compounds. When left undisturbed for some time, the pulp of passion fruit juice separates from the water and sediments at the bottom of the container hence fails to maintain a homogeneous mixture. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to screen stabilizers for use in maintaining the cloud stability of passion fruit juice and determining its physicochemical characteristics. The cloudy stabilized juice was prepared after screening with pectin, modified starch, carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and xanthan gum, pectin was selected as the most suitable stabilizer for maintaining the cloud stability of passion fruit juice. On analyzing the physiochemical properties of the passion fruit juice stabilized with a pectin concentration of 1% (w/v), the juice had a pH of 2.944±0.067, a titratable acidity of 0.467±0.012, ascorbic acid concentration of 26.347% (w/v), a brix value of 9.667%, a brix acid ratio of 20.690±0.68, total sugars of 164.71±8.81% (w/v), turbidity of 1059.07±35.54 NTU and viscosity of 4.95 ± 0.36. Pectin stabilized passion fruit juice had no significant difference (p>0.05) in sensory attributes based on appearance, mouth feel and overall acceptability with mean scores of 7.5±1.18, 7.5±0.71 and 7.6±0.84 respectively and a significant difference (p<0.05) in flavor with a mean score of 7.1±1.20.