Study on the effect of curing and drying methods on biochemical properties of turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) cv. Roma

Abstract

Curing and drying methods plays a crucial role in determining the quality of turmeric. An experiment was carried out to study the effect of various curing and drying methods on the quality characteristics of turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) cv. Roma. The study was designed in a factorial completely randomized design (FCRD) with three replications consisting of twelve treatment combinations. The treatments consisted of two factors such as curing methods at six levels (traditional boiling, TNAU boiling method, slicing at 3mm, 5mm, 7mm and 10mm thickness) and drying methods at two levels (open sun drying and solar drying). Analysis of the quality attributes of the dried turmeric samples revealed that traditional water boiling followed by solar drying retained the highest levels of primary metabolites such as starch at 503.09 mg/g, carbohydrates at 587.87 mg/g and fat content at 3.32%. Conversely, slicing turmeric rhizomes at 3 mm thickness followed by solar drying resulted in the highest protein content (7.22 mg/g) and retention of secondary metabolites such as oleoresin at 9.74%, essential oil at 3.42%, curcumin at 5.20%, phenol content at 32.42 mg/g and antioxidant content at 57.53%.