Utilization of ripe coconut water in the development of probiotic gelatin

Desserts with vegetable ingredients are a constantly expanding global market due to the search for alternatives to cow's milk. Fermentation of these matrices by lactic acid bacteria can add greater functionality to the product, improving its nutritional, sensory, and food safety characteristics, as well as creating bioactive components with beneficial effects on health. Concern for health and well-being has aroused interest in byproducts of the industry that have functional properties for the body, such as mature coconut water, a normally discarded residue that is rich in nutrients. This study aimed to develop a probiotic gelatin based on pulp and water from mature coconuts and evaluate the physicochemical characteristics, viability of the Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus LR32 strain in the medium, as well as the texture properties of the product.

After collection and cleaning, the physicochemical characterization, mineral analysis, analysis of the total phenolic content and antioxidant activity of mature coconut water were carried out, as well as the centesimal composition of its pulp. Afterwards, the gelling was developed with the addition of modified corn starch, gelatin, sucrose, and probiotic culture, being subjected to acidity analysis, texture profile and cell count, on the first day and every 7 days during 21 days of storage, under refrigeration at 5 °C. An analysis of the centesimal composition was also carried out.

The main minerals in coconut water were potassium (1,932.57 mg L^-1), sodium (19.57 mg L^-1), magnesium (85.13 mg L^-1) calcium (279.93 mg L^-1) and phosphorus (11.17 mg L^{- 1}), while the pulp had potassium (35.96 g kg^-1), sodium (0.97 g kg^-1), magnesium (2.18 g kg^-1), 37 calcium (1.64 g kg^-1), and phosphorus (3.32 g kg^-1). The phenolic content of the water and pulp was 5.72 and 9.77 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE) 100 g^-1, respectively, and the antioxidant capacity was 1.67 and 0.98 39 g of 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) mg^-1, respectively. The coconut pulp had 2.81 g 100 g^-1of protein, 1.11 g 100 g^-1 of 40 ash, 53% moisture, and 5.81 g 100 g^-1 of carbohydrates. The gelatin produced during the storage period presented firmness parameters ranging from 145.82 to 206.81 grams-force (gf), adhesiveness from 692.85 to 1,028.63 gf sec, cohesiveness from 0.604 to 0.473, elasticity from 0.901 to 0.881, gumminess from 86.27 to 97.87 gf, and chewiness from 77.72 to 91.98 gf. Regarding the viability of the probiotic microorganism, the dessert had 7.49 log CFU g^-1 that remained viable during the 21-day storage, reaching 8.51 CFU g^-1. Acidity ranged from 0.15 to 0.64 g of lactic acid 100 g^-1. The centesimal composition of the product showed 4.88 g 100 g^-1 of protein, 0.54 g 100 g^-1 of ash, 85.21% moisture, and 5.37g 100 g^-1 of carbohydrates. The development of the gelatin made it possible to obtain a differentiated product, contributing to diversification in the food sector, providing a viable alternative for maintaining consumer health and reducing costs compared to desserts already available on the market.