VIDA ÚTIL DE PIMENTÃO VERDE MINIMAMENTE PROCESSADO E ARMAZENADO EM DIFERENTES TEMPERATURAS

Abstract

Green pepper is a widely consumed fruit in tropical countries, as is the case in Brazil, but has a very short post-harvest shelf life. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the physico-chemical characteristics of minimally processed green peppers with different cuts and stored under different temperatures. The experimental design consisted of a factorial scheme (3x2x3) being three cuts: half moon, sticks (strips) and cubes; two storage temperatures 25 ° C and 10 ° C and three evaluation periods with a three day interval. The fruits were submitted to physical and chemical analysis of titratable acidity (AT), loss of mass (PM), soluble solids (SS), pH and ascorbic acid (VIT C). During the evaluations it can be observed that the peppers have the potential to be commercialized when minimally processed, but the use of the technique is more appropriate when followed by storage at lower temperatures because this generates a lower mass loss and preserves the constituents of the fruit. It was also noticed a significance of the cuts to the useful life of the fruit indicating the use of the cubed cut for commercialization of this product.