Vol. 7, Issue 3 (2018)

Author(s):
Abhishek Thakur and Rakesh Sharma

Abstract:
Vitamin C enriched palatable bitter gourd based functional squash made by blending bitter gourd juice with aonla fruit (Embilica officinalis) juice in different ratios. The beverages were prepared by using different levels of fruit part or blended juice viz. 25, 30 and 35% and TSS (40 and 45^oB) and analyzed for their bio-chemical, antioxidant potential and sensory quality attributes. The squash prepared using 30 percent blended juice of the combination consisting of 70 percent bitter gourd and 30 percent aonla juice with 45^oB TSS had recorded highest sensory scores for colour, flavour and overall acceptability. Organoleptically best combination (T₇) had also been found to contain higher amounts of ascorbic acid and phenolics compared to bitter gourd squash. The unit cost of production of the developed product (Rs 66.57 per 750 ml PET bottle) was comparable to that of the standard bitter gourd squash (Rs 68.21 per 750 ml PET bottle) and Further, the developed product showed strong antimicrobial activity against E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus and good antioxidant potential indicating its health benefits and thus their availability in the market will definitely benefit the consumers.