Influence of Combine Treatments on Enzymatic Browning, Microbial Growth, and Sensory Attributes of TomEJC Mango Pulp

Enzymatic browning is one of the main issues with TomEJC mango pulp preservation. Generally, different physical and chemical treatments are used to overcome the browning occurred by enzymes. Direct heating creates a color change and caramel taste in TomEJC mango pulp due to its higher sugar concentration. The current research aimed to study the effects of steam blanching and chemical treatments on browning, microbial growth, and sensory attributes of TomEJC mango pulp at -12±3 °C. Steam blanching with 0.1% sodium metabisulphite (SMS) treated samples exhibited significant improvements in Browning Index (BI), polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity, pulp color, microbial growth, and sensory properties. Steam blanching with citric acid (CA) treatments showed low BI, PPO activity, color changes, and microbial growth. However, satisfied sensory properties were obtained after the steam blanching with SMS treatments. Unblanched SMS treated samples also exhibited higher performances than both steam blanched and unblanched controls. Furthermore, ready-to-serve (RTS) drinks prepared by steam blanching with SMS treated samples showed significantly higher scores for sensory properties such as color, odor, taste, and overall acceptability. Thus, RTS drinks prepared by steam blanching with SMS treated samples received higher acceptability from the panelists. The lowest microbial growth was also recorded in the same sample. Therefore, it can be concluded that steam blanching with SMS (0.1%) was the best treatment for the preservation of TomEJC mango pulp at -12±3 °C with minimum browning. Moreover, steam blanching is a more effective method for heating TomEJC mango pulp than direct heating to overcome sugar caramelization.