Elaboration of novel and comprehensive protocols toward determination of textural properties and other sensorial attributes of canning peach fruit

Abstract

Peach (Prunus persica) products are destined for fresh consumption or are being consumed after processing in various forms. Despite its huge economic importance, no standardized protocols to define sensorial attributes and mechanical properties of canned peaches exist. Thus, the aim of the current study was dual and included the setting up of a list of sensorial descriptors and the elaboration of a toolkit to evaluate the textural properties of canned peaches using large deformation mechanical testing. A standardized vocabulary (“consensus language”) was initially developed toward the determination and quantification of 15 sensorial attributes through a descriptive quantitative analysis (QDA) approach. Textural properties were additionally evaluated with a TA-XT Plus texture analyzer by applying three discrete large deformation tests [(a) puncture test with a flat cylindrical probe; (b) texture profile analysis (TPA) with a flat compression plunger; and (c) Kramer shear test (KST) cell with a bladed fixture]; that is, a total of nine textural properties, namely, “puncture firmness” (individual halves), “Kramer” hardness (applied in a complex mixture of peach slices), “TPA” hardness (central section of halves), fracturability, consistency, cohesiveness, springiness, chewiness, and total hardness were assessed. We hereby present novel protocols that encompass the comprehensive determination of sensorial and textural properties. The established protocols, providing complementary information, are readily applicable to the canning industry in setting up qualitative tests to determine product shelf life as well as to assist on going breeding programs for the evaluation of new candidate clingstone cultivars destined for canning purposes.