Bebida fermentada de leite de coco (cocos nucifera) adicionada de cultura nativa potencialmente probiótica e polpa de jambolão (Syzygium cumini (L.) Skeels)

Abstract

Fermented products have been used as potential products with benefits to health since the antiquity. In recent times, the consumer interest in non-dairy probiotics has been increased, as the use of milk has become limited due to an increasing number of people allergic to its proteins, intolerant to lactose, adept a to low-cholesterol diet, or even vegans. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the functional and technological potential of a plant-based fermented beverage using coconut milk (Cocos nucifera), jambolan (java plum, black plum or jamun) pulp (Syzygium cumini (L.) Skeels) and a potentially probiotic indigenous culture of Lactobacillus mucosae, comparing its physical-chemical, microbiological, hygienic-sanitary, antioxidant and sensory parameters with two dairy beverages (controls), one with lactose and another free of this disaccharide, since these last two are the most similar to the reference products on the market. Three formulations were produced in triplicate each: BCL (control 1 - dairy beverage with lactose); BIL (control 2 - lactose-free dairy beverage) and BVC (coconut milk plant-beverage). For all beverages, the indigenous culture Lactobacillus mucosae CNPC007, the starter culture Streptococcus thermophilus TA40 and the jambolan pulp were used. After processing, the products were stored at 4 ± 1 ° C and sampled weekly for analysis during 21 days. The plant beverage compared to the dairy ones presented good stability regarding the pH (close to 3.6) and acidity (between 0.41 and 0.39 g lactic acid/100 g), population of viable lactobacilli between 7.03 and 8.16 log CFU/mL and potential antioxidant activity (close to 400 g product to scavenge 1 g DPPH) at all sampling periods. Among the parameters evaluated in the sensory analysis, color and overall acceptance were those of highest relevance for the plant beverage, achieving scores of up to 8.29 and 7.28, respectively, within a scale from 0 to 10. Thus, the plant formulation elaborated under the study conditions showed to be a potential category among healthy and functional non-dairy foods and as a technologically viable product, in addition to the use of indigenous cultures and a commonly neglected fruit by the Brazilian population, which has an high antioxidant capacity, making it possible to reduce the production costs and ensure greater access of this kind of product to the consumers.