Use of underutilized Elite Banana Cultivars in the production of Composite Tomato Ketchup

Abstract

FHIA 01, FHIA 17, FHIA 25 and KM 5 are new high yielding, pest and disease resistant banana (Musa spp.) cultivars. The adoption rate and economic value of these cultivars in Uganda have however been low. These cultivars could be used in the production of ketchup, thereby helping in lowering ketchup production costs. This study determined the ripening characteristics of the four banana varieties stored at 26 ± 3°C for 25 days to determine the most suitable cultivar(s) and ripening time for use in the formulation of a high quality composite ketchup. Using the selected cultivars, composite ketchup was formulated using the following banana to tomato pulp ratios: 50:50, 60:40, 70:30, 80:20, 90:10 100:0, 0:100 and physicochemical characteristics of these ketchups were determined. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used in optimizing the banana-tomato ketchup formulation for recommended viscosity and TSS content. The optimized banana tomato ketchups were subjected to sensory evaluation by a panel of 67 judges using a nine point hedonic scale. Results indicated that KM 5 had the fastest rate of ripening and highest climacteric peak content of starch (4.8%), titratable acidity (TA) (0.48%) and dry matter (DM) (24%) while FHIA 25 had the highest total soluble solids (TSS) (25.6%) and pulp: peel ratio (p/p) (3.379) at the climacteric peak. The cultivars took 7 – 22 days to reach the climacteric peak a point at which they were most suitable for composite ketchup production. Ketchup viscosities varied in the order KM 5 > tomato > FHIA 25, while ketchup syneresis varied in the order tomato (31.1%) > FHIA 25 (27.7%) > KM 5(14.7). The TSS (28.6 – 30.0%), TA (1.466 – 1.694%) and pH (3.171 – 3.537) of all the ketchup were within the limits stipulated by ketchup standards. Sensory evaluation of the optimized ketchup samples revealed that the composite banana tomato ketchup samples (liked slightly) were significantly different (P<0.05) from the pure tomato ketchup samples (liked moderately). KM 5 and FHIA25 are the best cultivars that can be adopted for commercial production of acceptable composite banana-tomato ketchup.