Osmotic Concentration of Gooseberry Fruits - The Influence of Temperature, Time and Pretreatment Methods on Mass Transfer and Total Polyphenol and Organic Acid Content.

The objective of the study is to assess the influence of temperature, time and enzymatic pretreatment on the osmotic concentration of gooseberry fruits (cultivar Biały Triumf). The fruits were osmotically concentrated in a sucrose solution at 65 °Brix and 40 to 70 °C for 5 to 240 min. Two experimental procedures were employed. In the first procedure, prior to concentration the fruits were immersed in the solution containing lipolytic enzymes, and then in the solution containing pectinolytic enzymes. In the second procedure, pectinolytic enzymes were added to the sucrose solution. The kinetics of the osmotic concentration was studied based on the changes in dry matter content, water loss, and solid gain. Higher temperature and longer process time led to higher values of the mentioned parameters. After 1 h of concentration at 40 °C, dry matter content was 13.9%, while at 70 °C it was 20.4%. The use of pectinolytic enzymes during osmotic concentration resulted in higher effectiveness of the process. After 2 h of concentration with the use of pectinolytic enzymes, solid gain was seven times higher than that in the control sample. Enzymatic treatment with lipase and pectinase before concentration also increased solid gain during osmotic concentration (up to twelve times after 2 h at 40 °C). The lower processing temperature, the higher retention of phenolic compounds in fruits was observed. The retention of phenolics was the highest at 40 °C (92.2% at 2 h). Among organic acids (malic, shikimic and citric), the highest retention was exhibited by citric acid; at 1 h of concentration, its fraction in the obtained fruit syrup content was from 95.9 to 83.1% as compared to the starting material.