A. Nouviaire et al., Drying and texturation of strawberry by Controlled Instantaneous Pressure Drop and air drying., SCI ALIMENT, 21(2), 2001, pp. 177-192
To obtain new dehydrated products (dried and crisp products) for varied app
lications in confectionery or instant foods, the texturation process by Con
trolled Instantaneous pressure Drop (DIC) has been applied to strawberries
drying. This operation is based on mechanical effect and heating treatment
in three steps. Firstly, products are air dried until a precise moisture co
ntent. Then, they are submitted to heating under high pressure followed by
a quasi-instantaneous pressure drop into vacuum causing their puffing and t
exturation by partial self-vaporization of water. Finally, air drying bring
s products to a low moisture content. The quality of final products is quan
tified as to the structure (expansion rate), the aptitude to the technology
(reduction of final stage of drying) and the functional properties (speed
and capacity of rehydration). Effects of three DIC operating parameters (tr
eatment pressure, treatment time and product moisture content) have been an
alysed by experimental design. The results of this statistical study will h
elp to find an optimal combination of these operating parameters for strawb
erries drying and texturation.