Soft-flesh fruits of Capsicum frutescens L. as the raw material for processing

Abstract

The research material was made up of two selected homozygotic lines of Capsicum frutescens L. ( Cf SF 1 and Cf SF 2) obtained as a result of pedigree selection of soft-flesh materials of different levels of capsaicinoid content. The physiologically mature fruits of this type are characterised by soft flesh that can be easily separated mechanically from inedible parts. Thus, it is not necessary to use heat treatment. The evaluated lines were characterised by a similar level of crops, and were different with regard to the number of fruits per plant and the average weight of fruit. Also, significant statistical differences were found as to the thickness of fruit walls, that is, a characteristic that determines the biotechnological performance of fruits in soft-flesh forms. The technological weight of the fruit, being the weight of the pericarp without the pedicle and the calyx sepal, was 55 g and 128 g, respectively, for Cf SF 1 and Cf SF 2 lines. Similar differences referred to the biotechnological weight, that is, technological weight minus the weight of the placenta including the seeds and the skin. The average biotechnological performance, which is the share of the biotechnological weight in the average weight of the fruit, was 62%. It means that the genotypes tested may be the source of raw material for obtainment of 2 kg of the concentrated juice from fruits collected from 1 m2 of the crops. Regarding the product as biologically active food, the production capacity of genotypes may be interesting from the practical point of view.