Proses fermentasi biji kakao merupakan prasyarat untuk menghasilkan prekursor rasa dan aroma kakao yang kuat yang dapat meningkatkan kualitas coklat yang dihasilkan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui pengaruh lama fermentasi terhadap sifat fisik, kimia dan organoleptik bubuk kakao yang dihasilkan. Penelitian ini menggunakan rancangan acak lengkap (RAL) dengan lama fermentasi biji kakao 2 hari, 4 hari, 6 hari, 8 hari dan 10 hari berturut-turut dengan 3 kali ulangan. Dari perlakuan lama fermentasi biji kakao yang dilakukan didapat hasil produk kakao terbaik dan juga memenuhi standar mutu adalah bubuk kakao dengan lama fermentasi 6 hari dengan nilai kadar air 5,7%, kadar asam 5.07, nilai aktivitas antioksidan 66.5% dan warna dark moderate orange.

Summary There has been considerable research into ascorbic acid (AA) as a food component in the human diet and disease prevention. Microencapsulation technology has a promising strategy for enhancing the stability of AA towards the carrier food. The effects of varying hydrocolloid proportions on encapsulation of AA by spray drying have been evaluated. Spray drying pilot plant scale was used to produce the microcapsules, and capillary electrophoresis has been applied to analyse the retention of AA during bread making process. To investigate the characteristics of microstructure of encapsulated AA after processing, the environmental scanning electron microscope was used to investigate the structure of microcapsules. In addition to that to measure the particle size and distribution of microcapsules, the laser beam scattering was used. The impact of varying hydrocolloids proportion on encapsulation of AA by spray drying was studied.

BACKGROUNDThere is increased interest in the food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries in using ascorbic acid as an important component in the human diet for health support and disease prevention. However, its use as an ingredient is limited by its high instability and sensitivity to environmental conditions. Microencapsulation technology has been proposed to increase the stability of ascorbic acid. The aim this work was to evaluate the effect of ascorbic acid loading rate on the physicochemical properties of encapsulated ascorbic acid. Loading contents of ascorbic acid of 6%, 9%, 18%, 36%, 54% and 72% were trialled using spray drying in conjunction with starch‐based encapsulating agents.RESULTSThe results showed that the loading content has a significant effect on ascorbic acid retention, yield, moisture content, water activity, colour change, particle size and distribution of microcapsules. Morphology of microcapsules also was assessed using environmental scanning electron microscopy, showing that the microcapsules had good structure and integrity for a loading content of 18% and even as high as 54%. At levels beyond this, capsules showed a lack of coherence and integrity of the outer shell.CONCLUSIONSThe results indicated that ascorbic acid microparticles at various loading rates have a substantial impact on physical and chemical properties of microcapsules. Loading content can be selected to ensure colour uniformity and minimal effects on colour during food fortification processes. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry