Production of dried ivy gourd sheet as a health snack

Ivy gourd (Coccinia grandis) has recently been recognized as a rich source of β-carotene. To add value to the fresh leaves a process to produce dried ivy gourd sheet as a health snack was the aim of this study. The effects of pretreatment, i.e., blanching in NaCl solution (0–3% w/v), and drying methods, i.e., hot air drying and vacuum drying at 60–80 °C, on the drying characteristics and quality, viz. colour, texture and β-carotene content of dried ivy gourd sheet were investigated. The results showed that dried sheet pretreated by brine blanching and vacuum drying resulted in better retention of colour and β-carotene as well as texture of the dried sheet as compared to the dried untreated and dried water blanched samples. Higher drying temperature also resulted in higher β-carotene retention due to shorter drying time.

Research highlights▶ The production of dried ivy gourd sheet was developed in this study. ▶ Brine blanching helped maintain colour of dried sheet better than water blanching. ▶ Vacuum drying help maintain colour and β-carotene content in dried ivy gourd sheet. ▶ Higher drying temperatures resulted in higher losses of colour and β-carotene.