Physical, physicochemical and functional technological properties of flours produced from yellow mombin (Spondias mombin L.) epicarp

Abstract

Yellow mombin (Spondias mombin L.) is a plant native to tropical America and occurs in several states in Brazil. Yellow mombin fruit has desirable characteristics for industrialization, but its epicarp (peel) having good nutritional characteristics is discarded. Flour obtained by dehydration processes is an alternative in the food industry for the utilization of by-products. Thus, the objective of this study was to develop a product from an industrial residue and analyze the physical, physicochemical and functional technological characteristics of the yellow mombin epicarp flours produced by drying in an oven, subjected to different temperatures (40, 50, 60 and 70 °C) and by lyophilization. To reach these final moisture contents, the required times were 11.5, 9.0, 7.0 and 4.5 h, respectively, for the temperatures of 40, 50, 60 and 70 °C. For lyophilization, 24 hours were required. After the samples were dried, they were processed to obtain the flour and evaluated for color, pH, titratable acidity, total soluble solids, bulk density and granulometry. Flour produced by lyophilized epicarp of yellow mombin showed a lighter color and a higher tendency to yellow, greater amount of soluble solids and lower density. FEPL particles were smaller, i.e., finer flour. All flours had low pH values, between 2.65 and 2.83.