Blanching Effect on the Quality and Shelf-Life Characteristics of Fresh Cowpea Grains [<i>Vigna unguiculata</i> (L.) Walp.]
Romayana Medeiros de Oliveira Tavares,
Cristiane Fernandes de Assis,
Patrícia de Oliveira Lima,
Paulo Douglas Santos de Lima,
Roberto Rodrigues Cunha Lima,
Karla Suzanne Florentino da Silva Chaves Damasceno
Affiliations
Romayana Medeiros de Oliveira Tavares
Health Sciences Center, Nutrition Postgraduate Program, Department of Nutrition, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Av. Senador Salgado Filho, s/n, Lagoa Nova, Natal 59078-900, Brazil
Cristiane Fernandes de Assis
Health Sciences Center, Nutrition Postgraduate Program, Department of Pharmacy, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Av. Senador Salgado Filho, s/n, Lagoa Nova, Natal 59078-900, Brazil
Patrícia de Oliveira Lima
Postgraduate Program in Animal Science, Department of Animal Sciences, Federal Rural University of the Semi-Arid. Rua Francisco Mota, 572, Pres. Costa e Silva, Mossoró 59625-900, Brazil
Paulo Douglas Santos de Lima
Department of Theoretical and Experimental Physics, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Av. Senador Salgado Filho, s/n, Lagoa Nova, Natal 59078-900, Brazil
Roberto Rodrigues Cunha Lima
Federal Institute of Education Science and Technology of Rio Grande do Norte, Rua Brusque, 2926, Potengi, Natal 59112-490, Brazil
Karla Suzanne Florentino da Silva Chaves Damasceno
Health Sciences Center, Nutrition Postgraduate Program, Department of Nutrition, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Av. Senador Salgado Filho, s/n, Lagoa Nova, Natal 59078-900, Brazil
The high perishability of fresh cowpeas impairs its commercialization. Thus, this study aims to determine the temperature–time binomial for blanching fresh cowpea [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp] by evaluating the effects of heat treatment and kinetic behavior on the peroxidase (POD) activity and on the physical characteristics (firmness, color, mass gain). A factorial design (3 × 6) with temperature (70, 80, and 90 °C) and time (1, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 min) was implemented. Physicochemical, microbiological, and enzymatic (POD) changes, in addition to photographic monitoring, were evaluated throughout the storage period (4.90 °C). With regard to the effects of the independent variables and the first-order kinetic model, it was determined that 70 °C for 4 min of blanching maintained and/or improved the physical characteristics of the raw material. The pH and the acidity of the blanched fresh cowpea changed little during the storage period; the microbiological load and POD activity reduced with blanching and remained stable until the eighth day of storage, and provided an increase of 5 days in shelf-life under refrigeration when compared to non-blanched. Blanching is shown as an alternative for improving fresh cowpeas, favoring an economic increase in production with guaranteed quality and safety attributes.
