Development and Quality Evaluation of Vacuum Fried Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) Chips

Background: Jackfruit is unique tropical fruit, increased popularity worldwide in recent years for its immense health benefits and its flavour. The high postharvest losses and the seasonal availability of jackfruit increase the scope of vacuum frying technology. Vacuum frying technology offers health benefits as well as attractive physical properties. As the boiling point and smoke point is decreased due to the reduced pressure applied during vacuum frying, thermal degradation of oil and loss of nutrients at high temperature can be checked and the absence of oxygen during the process inhibits the lipid oxidation and enzymatic browning which helps to maintain the color and flavor of the raw feed. Methods: Different pre-treatments (blanching, drying, freezing and untreated) were done for vacuum fried jackfruit chips and compared with atmospheric fried sample in blended oil (rice bran and palm oil (80:20)). Result: The Un-treated sample had the best qualities with less oil content (33.35%), moisture content (0.501%), hardness (1.04 N), water activity (0.487). The optimized treatment condition at 100°C, 9kPa vacuum for 20 min with de-oiling speed of 1000 rpm at 5 min. produced chips with good quality parameters like less oil content (20.73%), hardness (1.04N), water activity (0.473), moisture content (0.481%), L* (70.18), a* (2.71) and b* (35.41). The threshold level of TPC in edible oil was 25-27%.