Studies on the on the quality of banana centre core flour prepared by different drying methods

Bananas rank fourth in the world as a dietary staple after rice, wheat and corn. It is a tropical herbaceous plant cultivated over 130 countries. The trunk of the banana tree is called the pseudostem which is of several leaf sheaths. Inside the central part of the pseudostem is the core which is edible. Banana plantations after harvesting of the fruits leave behind the pseudostem found abundant in banana growing areas as biomass. These pseudostems are normally burnt in the fields itself.

In many parts of India, the pith or the tender core of the banana pseudo-stem has been used as food after boiling and the addition of spices. Banana centre core is rich in fibre and aids in weight loss. It helps to relieve constipation. It is also found to be rich in potassium and vitamin B6. It helps to detoxify the body being a diuretic. It is used in the treatment of kidney stones (Chandrasekaran, 2012).

Banana centre core mainly comprises of 90 per cent moisture and hence cannot be kept for a long period of time. Banana centre core can be converted into flour which could be used to prepare bakery products, soup etc. The beneficial uses of plant flours in the pharmaceutical and food industry directly depend on their functional properties. Plant flours having high dietary fibre could be blended with wheat flour to increase the dietary fibre intake in the preparation of bakery products.  Keeping in view of the wastage of banana pseudostem in plantations, the present study was aimed to convert the fresh banana centre core to flour which could have an extended shelf life and finds use in food applications. Banana centre core was dried by different drying methods for production of flour and their effect on the physical and functional qualities of the flour was found out.

Website:  http://www.arjonline.org/agricultural-sciences/american-research-journal-of-agriculture/