Summary
This work aimed to compare the physicochemical characteristics and acceptance of a cashew nut meal candy with two similar commercial products made from peanut. The candy was prepared using 59.5% cashew nut meal, 25.0% sugar, 0.5% salt, 5.0% cassava flour and 10.0% corn oil ground together and moulded into a parallelepiped shape. The products were analysed for their physicochemical characteristics (moisture, ash, lipids, proteins, carbohydrates, water activity), instrumental colour (L*a*b*) and sensory acceptance (9 point hedonic scale). The results were compared by ANOVA and the Tukey’s test (α=0.05). Slight physicochemical differences were observed: the moisture content ranged from 1.01 to 2.79%, ash from 1.23 to 2.75%, lipids from 30.28 to 31.27%, proteins from 14.19 to 16.90%, carbohydrates from 50.21 to 54.07% and water activity from 0.295 to 0.429. Although the cashew nut candy was lighter and less red (L* = 74.48, a* = 1.38) than the commercial peanut candy (mean values L* = 54.33, a* = 8.08), it presented similar acceptance to those products, the scores varying between 7.0 and 7.8 (“liked” to “liked very much” on the hedonic scale). Considering that its water activity was lower than 0.6, the cashew nut candy could be considered microbiological stable at room temperature and could be regarded as a good alternative for the use of the residue obtained after the extraction of oil from broken kernels.
Key words:
Anacardium occidentale L.; Proximate composition; Residues; Sensory analysis