Karakteristik Mutu Biji Kakao Aceh Hasil Fermentasi Dengan Berbagai Cara Dan Interval Waktu Pengadukan

(Quality Characteristics Of Aceh Cacao Beans Resulted From Different Fermentation Methods) ABSTRACT. Response of cocoa beans to any fermentation treatment may vary according to crop variety, farming conditions and practices, and fermentation methods; including type of beans stirring methods and stirring frequencies applied during fermentation period. The objective of this research is to study quality characteristics of Aceh fermented cocoa beans treated with different stirring methods and stirring frequencies. The cocoa beans of 40 cm mass depth were kept in 53x40x50 cm rattan buckets and were fermented for 5 days. Beans stirring during fermentation was conducted either by in-place stirring andreplace-stirring to other rattan bucket. Stirring period was set for each 12 hours, 24 hours, and 48 hours of fermentation time. Beans temperature, pH, and total sugar content for each stirring period along five days-fermentationtime were recorded. The fermented beans were sundried for moisture content of approximately 6%. The results showed that the beans temperature during fermentation increased up to 45.7-46.6oC on the third-day and then decreased to 37.9-40.4oC on the fifth-day. The highest temperature (46.6oC) was recorded for in-place stirring with stirring period of 48 hours. The pH value of the beans decreased from 5.6-5.9 on the first-day to 3.2-3.4 on the fourth-day and then slightly increased to 3.4 in average on the fifth-day. The total sugar content decreased from 9.1-9.6% on the first-day to approximately 0.4% on the fifth-day. Quality analysis of the fermented beans showed that pH value varied 5.5-5.8 and fat content was 47.9-49.1%. The best quality of fermented beans was found for replace-stirring method with stirring period of 24 hours. This treatment resulted in fermented cocoa beans with 0.4% moldy, 17.5% partly purple, 3.0% slaty, and 76.7% fully fermented.