Gel formation of pectin from okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L. Moench) leaves, pulp and seeds

Nur Farhana Abd Rahman; Amin I.; Sadeq Hassan A. S.; Shuhaimi M.

Gel formation of pectin from okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L. Moench) leaves, pulp and seeds

2017

Nur Farhana Abd Rahman | Amin I. | Sadeq Hassan A. S. | Shuhaimi M.

Okra plant particularly its fruit is highly mucilage which composed of pectin and high content of carbohydrate. Byproducts of okra plant such as leaves and matured fruits will be discarded whenever the young fruits are harvested which eventually leads to environmental pollution. Those byproducts have potential to become plant-based alternative for bovine and pork related gelatin. This study aimed to determine the gel formation of pectin extracted from okra plant byproducts particularly the leaves, pulp (skin without seeds) and seeds. Pectin was extracted using a sequential extraction with the applications of hot buffer (HB) and hot buffer with chelating agents (CH). CH extraction gave the highest pectin yield (>40%) compared to HB and DA. The HB fraction harbored highly purified pectin due to high anhydro uronic acid content and degree of esterification. The highest pectin yield was extracted from seeds with an overall fraction yield of 86%, followed by the leaves (75%) and pulp (71%). The pectin was blended with konjac glucomannan (KG) in 5.0:1.6 ratio to form gel and stored for 16 - 18hr at 4°C ± 1.0. The gel formed using HB extraction was found to have significantly lower (p < 0.05) gel strength than HB with CH extraction. This study concluded that HB and CH pectin extracts derived from okra leaves, pulp and seeds have good potential to become gelling agent.

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