Utilizing the Bioactivity of Nutmeg Leaf Oil to Raise the Natural Antioxidant Content of Cooking Oil

Abstract

Nutmeg oil, also known as essential oil, is an oil extracted from the seeds or leaves of nutmeg through a distillation process. Nutmeg oil has several advantages, including as an antibacterial ingredient, an additive in the perfume industry, and as a raw material for medicines in the pharmaceutical industry. In this study, the essential oil from nutmeg leaves was produced using the steam-water distillation method, where the nutmeg leaves were dried before the steam-water distillation process was carried out. As a fixed variable, 150 g of bulk cooking oil and 150 g of bimoli cooking oil were used, while as a variable, steam-water distillation temperature was used with temperature variations of 105 oC, 115 oC, and 125 oC. Samples of 1 mL, 2 mL, 3 mL, and 4 mL of nutmeg leaf oil were mixed with bulk cooking oil to compare the free fatty acid oxidation ability and peroxide value after 1 day, 3 days, 5 days, and 7 days. Analysis of the compound content of nutmeg leaf oil, free fatty acids, peroxide number, and antioxidant activity was carried out using GC-MS and 0.004% DPPH. The production of nutmeg leaf oil was obtained as much as 91 ml by steam distillation at a maximum temperature of 125 oC. Using a DPPH of 0.004 percent and a quantitative measure of IC50, the optimal antioxidant activity at 125 oC was found to be 2.03 percent. A comparison of free fatty acid numbers and peroxide values found in this study revealed that pure bimoli cooking oil had the lowest free fatty acid and peroxide values.

Keywords

• nutmeg leaf oil
• antioxidants
• steam-water distillation method
• cooking oil