Stability of nut-based beverage made of Brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa) and baru (Dipteryx alata Vogel)

Abstract

People are looking for foods that promote health benefits and sometimes free of some compounds that are present because some individuals have restrictions to them, e.g. in protein foods. This trend has driven the food processing market to offer new products with a high nutritional content, low calorie, lower fat content, with specific characteristics such as lactose-free, gluten-free and convenience products, with the objective to meet the demands of consumers. In this context, water-soluble extracts appear as a plant-based beverage that have commercial and nutritional appeal and that also have been used as alternative to lactose-free assdiets. Thus, the aim of this study was to process and determine the stability during storage under refrigeration of a nut-based beverage made with 9,2% (w/w) brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa), 21,7% of (w/w) baru (Dipteryx alata Vogel), 69,1% (w/w) of water, added of 10% (w/v) of sugar, expressed in sucrose. Analysis of color, pH, tritratable acidity, proximate composition, microorganisms and sensory evaluation were performed to determine the shelf life of the nut-based beverage. The beverage presented color ranging from red to yellow and complied with the microbiological standards established by current legislation, remaining microbiologically stable for at least 28 days. The water-soluble extract based on Castanha-do-Brasil and Baru obtained a high acceptance rate above 70% and achieved high scores for sensory attributes, with averages ranging between 7.09 and 7.26, on the hedonic scale, implying a shelf life greater than 28 days of storage under refrigeration.