Fibra de caju como ingrediente de vatapá Plant-based: desenvolvimento e perfil sensorial

Abstract

Cashew fiber is the co-product that comes from the processing of the fruit in industries. It is usually wasted or used for animal feed. The development of new food products using this ingredient as a base has been stimulated, aiming to add value to this product. Therefore, the objective of the present work was the development of a plant-based vatapá product based on cashew fiber, using a marketing research about plant-based products performed in the city of Fortaleza/CE and metropolitan region. An electronic questionnaire was formulated and distributed virtually, using the snowball method, where the participants were asked about their eating habits and preferences related to plant-based products with cashew fiber. After obtaining the data, formulations of vatapá based on cashew fiber were elaborated. Analyses of yield, acidity, pH, soluble solids, water and oil absorption capacity, color, evaluation of phenolic compounds and centesimal composition were performed to evaluate the raw material used. The formulations were submitted to physicochemical (pH, acidity, centesimal composition) and sensory analyses (acceptance, Check-All-That-Apply - CATA and Rate-All-That-Apply - RATA). Among the 404 respondents, 87.4% are omnivorous, 61.6% intend to reduce meat consumption in the future and 84% intend to consume the products made with cashew fiber, in addition to wanting healthy products, with good availability of nutrients and practicality in preparation. The cashew fiber presented an average yield of 16.99% after treatment and freeze-drying, besides 2.55% of moisture. The vatapá formulations were sensorially accepted with averages higher than 6.0 for appearance, taste, texture and global acceptance (scale from 1 to 9); average 3.0 for consistency, indicating ideal point (scale from 1 to 5); and average higher than 3.0 for purchase intention (scale from 1 to 5). In the CATA descriptive sensory test, the results indicated significant difference (p < 0.05) among the samples for yellow and brown colors. The RATA descriptive sensory test showed that the amount of cashew fiber used in the formulation influences the characteristics "fibrous texture", "brown color" and "yellow color". The plant-based vatapá type product with cashew fiber has production potential, since it was well accepted by the research participants.