Philippine E-Journals

Production, Proximate Analysis and Functional Properties of Dragon Fruit Peel Powder

Shella B. Cacatian | Lyndon John V Guittap

 

Abstract:

Dragon fruit peel is usually considered waste, yet it can be explored as a potential source of natural functional food ingredient that is a treasure for the health. The study examined the red-fleshed Dragon Fruit peel for its yield of powder, nutritive components, and functional features to assess its dietary value for humans. The experiment employed a triplicate data collection. Mean ± standard deviation was used to express the values obtained. After consuming a kilogram of fruit, the yield recovery of powder from red-fleshed Dragon Fruit peel is about 14%. Proximate analysis of the peel, prepared by grinding the dried peel into a fine powder, gave the following results: 21.34% crude fiber; 16.74% ash; 6.66% moisture; 4.35% crude protein; and 1.28% crude fat. The powder exhibits 14.90 g/g water absorption capacity, 1.89 g/g oil absorption capacity, 75.66% solubility, 18.31 swelling power, and 6% least gelation concentration. Dragon fruit peel produces a significant amount of powder. The powder contains nutritional attributes that could complement fiber and mineral deficits. It has desirable functional properties which can be further studied to replace all-purpose flour to enhance the nutritional quality of the value-added products.