Influence of biopolymers and freeze-drying shelf temperature on the quality of a mandarin snack

Abstract Freeze-drying is a dehydration process with a minimal effect on product quality. For this reason, it is especially adequate for use with food rich in bioactive compounds, which is the case of fruits. In this sense, despite being a high energy, time-consuming process, increasing opportunities may be expected for the use of freeze-drying to obtain fruit products, mainly if the energy cost is reduced. Heating shelf along freeze-drying greatly reduces the process time. In this study, both the impact of the use of gum Arabic and whey protein isolate and the effect of shelf temperature on the quality of a mandarin snack were studied. Adding the biopolymers and heating up to 40 °C makes the snack crunchier. In addition, biopolymers protect the color change the snack undergoes when heating along freeze-drying. However, the latter does not imply perceptible differences either at the sensory level, or in the vitamin C content.