Influence of pre-treatment on functional properties of potato flour

Potato is the most important tuber crop in the world. It belongs to family Solanaceae and plays an important role in world food security as it is a cheaper and plentiful crop. It is a versatile, carbohydrate-rich food. The pre-treatments on fruit and vegetables before drying in one form or other viz., washing in water, blanching, KMS, sugar, salt either alone or in combination inhibit enzymatic browning, enhancing color, flavour and texture retention Functional properties are the intrinsic physico-chemical properties that reflect the complex interaction between composition, structure, confirmation and physico-chemical properties of protein and other food components and the nature of environment in which these are associated and measured. The functional characteristics determine the utilization and use of food material for various food products. The functional properties of potato flour namely water absorption capacity, oil absorption capacity, swelling capacity, bulk density, foam capacity and foam stability were determined. The investigation was done to study the effect of pre-treatments viz., blanching, brine solution, KMS plus blanching and KMS solution on functional properties of potato flour (Kufri Chipsona -1, Kufri Jyoti and Kufri Bahar). The water absorption, oil absorption, bulk density, foam capacity and foam stability were maximum in KMS treated flour whereas swelling capacity was maximum in blanching plus KMS treated flour. The functional properties of Kufri Chipsona-1 flour were found to be superior as compared to Kufri Jyoti and Kufri Bahar flour.