Quality characteristics study of banana flour with blanching method and sodium metabisulfite pre-treatment

Banana is a horticulture commodity that is more prone to damage after harvest. Therefore, bananas are processed into intermediate products; flour is an alternative product to increase shelf life and added value. However, a common problem in banana flour production is browning which causes low-quality flour. This research aims to determine the effect of the blanching method and sodium metabisulphite concentration on banana flour quality. The research was conducted using a Completely Randomized Design with two factors, each with three replications. Factor I was three blanching methods (soaking, steaming, and boiling) dan Factor II was four levels of sodium metabisulphite concentration (0%, 0.05%, 0,1%, 0.15%). Data were analyzed using ANOVA and Duncan’s Multiple Range Test post hoc test. The experimental parameters included the content of water, carbohydrate, protein, fat, starch, sugar, ash, crude fiber, and organoleptic Test. The result showed a significant interaction (P<0.05) between the blanching method and sodium metabisulphite concentration on the content of carbohydrate, protein, starch, crude fiber, and sugar of banana flour, whereas no significant interaction (P>0.05) on water, fat, and ash content. A combination of the streaming blanching method and 0.1% sodium metabisulphite resulted in improved banana flour quality compared to other combination treatments with the content of water, carbohydrate, protein, fat, starch, sugar, crude fiber, and ash were 2.42%, 88.57%, 3.89%, 0.59%, 43.11%, 2.89%, 4.31%, 1.64%, respectively, as well as 5.62 scores on the organoleptic test.