Abstract Dragon fruit (Hylocereus sp.) is gaining popularity in India as a minor tropical fruit crop. However, due to its high perishability, drying is one of the viable method for its long term preservation. In this study, low-cost tray drying was used to produce dragon fruit powder using different hydrocolloids viz., maltodextrin, corn starch and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) in different combinations and different levels ranging from 2–64% of the pulp weight. The dragon fruit pulp without additives served as a control. The results indicated the additive combination predominantly made up of corn starch was the only one able to produce free-flowing dragon fruit powder. The results also revealed that the powder recovery percentage, lightness (L*) and bulk density increased with increasing additive concentrations, while the concentration of physico-chemical parameters in the powder showed a declining trend. Further, the study pointed out that the dragon fruit powder with the lowest level of additive incorporation (4%) had the highest nutrient retention after drying, with values for titratable acidity (0.98%), total sugars (49.73%), ascorbic acid (10.83 mg/100g), total betalins (361.39 mg BCE/100g), total phenols (466.70 mg GAE/100g), flavonoids (409.34 mg CE/100g) and antioxidant activity (DPPH-59.57% RSA). The perusal of the investigation suggests that the use of a low concentration of additives combination containing corn starch as principle ingredient (4%) has the potential to produce free flowing dragon fruit powder for use as a functional ingredient in the food industry.
Harish et al. (Tue,) studied this question.
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