SENSORY PROPERTIES AND ACCEPTABILITY OF TIGER-NUT POWDER MILK AS INFLUENCED BY SOAKING TEMPERATURE, SOAKING TIME AND DRYING TEMPERATURE
Milk derived from animal sources often contains anti-nutrient elements such as α-lactoglobulin, β-lactoglobulin, lactose, and cholesterol, which can contribute to various health challenges. Plant-based milk alternatives, such as tiger-nut milk, offer a healthier option but often have short shelf life and high storage costs as its limitations. This work aimed to investigate the effect of soaking temperature, soaking time, and drying temperature on the sensory properties (colour, mouth feels, texture) and overall acceptability of the milk powder produced. Powdered milk was produced from brown tiger nut at a combination of soaking temperatures (40, 50, 60, and 70 oC) soaking time (12, 24, 36, and 48 hrs), and drying time (50, 60, and 70 oC). The sensory properties and overall acceptability were examined for each combination. Organoleptic (colour, mouth-feel, texture) and acceptability quality of the solid milk produced was evaluated using a 48-member untrained panel to establish the sensory properties of the milk using a 9-point hedonic scale with 9-Extremely desirable and 1-Extremely undesirable. The attributes assessed are Colour, Mouth-feel, texture, and overall acceptability. Water was made available for the panellist to rinse their mouth after testing each sample and they were also allowed to retest the powdered milk. The results obtained showed that the colour of the milk produced by soaking the tiger nuts at 60 0C for 12 and 48 hours, dried at 60, 50, and respectively was the most preferred, the mouth-feel of milk powder produced by soaking the tiger nuts at 60 0C for 12 hours and drying at 60 0C is the most preferred by the panel, while the most preferred texture of the milk is of that produced by soaking the tiger-nuts at 50 0C for 48 hours and dried at 60 0C. In earnest, the overall acceptability of powder milk with the most preferred sensory properties is that produced by soaking the tiger nuts at 60 0C for 12 hours and dried at 60 0C
Keywords: Colour, Mouth-feel, Texture, Milk, Drying Temperature, Drying Time, Soaking Time, Soaking Temperature Tiger-nut, Milk powder
