A Otimização físico-química e aceitabilidade de uma bebida à base de castanha de caju variando em suco de manga e açúcar: um estudo piloto

Abstract

The development of a lactose-free beverage comes as a new feeding alternative to a product with excellent nutritional and functional characteristics to individuals with food restrictions related to milk. Thus, this study aimed to develop a cashew nut beverage with added mango juice and prebiotic substances by means of evaluating its sensory characteristics and physicochemical optimization. A 22 central composite rotatable design with five repetitions at the central point was applied to evaluate the effect of sugar and juice contents on the analyzed parameters. Data were evaluated by means of the response surface methodology, analysis of variance, and the means comparison test. Formulations with greater combined concentrations of juice and sugar obtained satisfactory acceptance. The means comparison test showed that the formulation that allows for the beverage’s greatest acceptance must contain 40% mango juice and 8% sugar. Soluble solids content was influenced only by the addition of sugar, where the formulations that presented greater solids concentration were the ones which obtained greater sensory acceptance. The beverage’s acidity was influenced only by the juice content, which, besides making formulations significantly more acid, did not affect their acceptance.