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EFFECT OF DRYING TECHNIQUES ON THE TOTAL PHENOLIC CONTENTS AND ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY OF SOME VEGETABLES BYPRODUCTS

Cristina Damian

Abstract

Vegetables are considered a rich source of antioxidants (flavonoids, carotenoids, vitamins), which are frequently added to stop the process of oxidation in processed food systems. The solid waste generated in food industry was considered as a low cost raw material for the extraction of natural antioxidants. The effect of drying techniques (ambient-drying and oven-drying) on the total phenolic contents and antioxidant activity of selected vegetables byproducts (garlic (Allium sativum L.), tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum L.) and avocado (Persea Americana Mill.)) were studied. Tomato byproducts contained similar amount of total polyphenols and exhibited similar DPPH radical scavenging activity with tomatoes. Avocado seed is a byproduct that contains a large amount of extractable polyphenols, which have attracted the attention of food industry due to their high antioxidant capacity. The amounts of total phenolics (TP) were higher in avocado byproducts followed by tomato and garlic byproducts. The tested vegetables exhibited appreciable radical scavenging capacity ranging from 27.8% to 56%. The results of this study revealed that the amounts of total phenolics and antioxidant activity of all tested vegetables decreased after thermal treatment; more pronounced decline was observed for the ambient-dried samples as against oven-drying.

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