Quality Assessment of Banana Pseudostem Candy Developed with Palm sugar and Lime Pre-treatment

Abstract

The present study was conducted to evaluate the quality of banana pseudostem (central core) candy developed using palm sugar and lime (calcium hydroxide) pre-treatment. Banana pseudostem, an underutilized agro-waste rich in dietary fibre and minerals were processed into candy after lime pre-treatment at different concentrations. Eleven treatments were formulated ranging from 0% lime (T₁) to 10% lime (T₁₁) and the candies were prepared using palm sugar as the sweetening agent. The developed products were analysed for key biochemical parameters including total soluble solids (TSS), total sugars, reducing sugars, acidity and protein content. Sensory evaluation was carried out by a panel of 15 semi-trained judges using a 9-point hedonic scale to assess colour, texture, taste, and overall acceptability. The results revealed that lime pre-treatment significantly influenced both the biochemical and sensory attributes of banana pseudostem candy. With increasing lime concentration notable variations were observed in sugar profile, acidity and protein content. Among the treatments, T₈ showed the highest overall acceptability followed by T₂ and T₁ indicating that moderate lime pre-treatment effectively improved texture, taste, colour and overall quality without imparting undesirable sensory characteristics. Excessive lime concentrations (T₉ to T₁₁) tended to adversely affect sensory scores despite certain improvements in nutritional attributes. The study concludes that banana pseudostem candy developed with palm sugar and an optimum level of lime pre-treatment particularly T₈, can serve as a nutritionally enriched and sensorially acceptable value-added product offering a promising approach for the utilization of banana pseudostem in functional confectionery products.