Edible herbs are used in the human diet both for their pleasant flavors and their countless benefits to human health. These properties are due to their components which mainly have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory therapeutic functions [1]. Since aromatic herbs are highly perishable materials due to their high water content, to ensure that the products are safe and stable over time they must be treated with appropriate techniques. The application of microwave-assisted drying, a promising technique in terms of process sustainability, for the stabilization of the aromatic herb Ocimum basilicum L. was studied [2,3]. The activities were carried out by applying different operating conditions in order to evaluate the impact of the time/temperature combination on the final quality of dried basil. The volatile fraction of the dried sample was obtained by steam distillation. Subsequently, through the use of gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS), the chemical profiles and the differences between the different treatments were evaluated. Conventional convective processes were also applied to make comparisons between dried basil products both at the production stage and from a quality preservation perspective. The results showed that microwave heating is suitable as a drying method, as expected, due to the known interaction between the plant tissue (rich in water) and the electromagnetic field; and that drying methods have a different influence on the chemical composition of essential oils extracted from dried products, in terms of number (varying from 41 to 18 components in different dried samples) and percentage (up to 67% in linalool and 21% in -trans-bergamotene in several dried samples) of its constituents. The advantage of the qualitative-quantitative variability, linked to the drying method, allows us to obtain essential oils with peculiar characteristics that can be used in the food sector (flavor enhancers), in the cosmetic sector (creams and soaps) and in the healthcare sector (phytotherapeutic formulations).
Postharvest Microwave Drying of Basil (Ocimum basilicum L.): The Influence of Treatments on the Quality of Dried Products
G. Amato
;L. De Martino;L. Caputo;A. A. Barba;V. De Feo
2024
Abstract
Edible herbs are used in the human diet both for their pleasant flavors and their countless benefits to human health. These properties are due to their components which mainly have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory therapeutic functions [1]. Since aromatic herbs are highly perishable materials due to their high water content, to ensure that the products are safe and stable over time they must be treated with appropriate techniques. The application of microwave-assisted drying, a promising technique in terms of process sustainability, for the stabilization of the aromatic herb Ocimum basilicum L. was studied [2,3]. The activities were carried out by applying different operating conditions in order to evaluate the impact of the time/temperature combination on the final quality of dried basil. The volatile fraction of the dried sample was obtained by steam distillation. Subsequently, through the use of gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS), the chemical profiles and the differences between the different treatments were evaluated. Conventional convective processes were also applied to make comparisons between dried basil products both at the production stage and from a quality preservation perspective. The results showed that microwave heating is suitable as a drying method, as expected, due to the known interaction between the plant tissue (rich in water) and the electromagnetic field; and that drying methods have a different influence on the chemical composition of essential oils extracted from dried products, in terms of number (varying from 41 to 18 components in different dried samples) and percentage (up to 67% in linalool and 21% in -trans-bergamotene in several dried samples) of its constituents. The advantage of the qualitative-quantitative variability, linked to the drying method, allows us to obtain essential oils with peculiar characteristics that can be used in the food sector (flavor enhancers), in the cosmetic sector (creams and soaps) and in the healthcare sector (phytotherapeutic formulations).I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
