Production of Lemongrass (Cymbopogon Citratus) Powder

Abstract

Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) is a perennial grass belonging to genus Cymbopogon. The lemongrass has a very wide demand in nutritional, medicinal and flavoring industry. Cymbopogon citratus contains various phytoconstituents such as flavonoids and phenolic compounds, terpenoids and essential oils, which may be responsible for the different biological activities. The demand for lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) is for its high citral content. But it is not stored as fresh for long time at ambient condition because it turns brown and rotten quickly. Even processing or preservation, its volatility and susceptibility to degradation are the major drawbacks for the use of Cymbopogon citratus oil. This research studied the feasibility of lemongrass dried powder production by treatment of vapor steaming (140^oC in 10s; 130^oC in 15s, 120^oC in 20s, 110^oC in 25s), drying temperature (40^oC, 45^oC, 50^oC, 55^oC) in 6 hours to 6.5% moisture content, grinding and coating materials (β-cyclodextrin, sodium alginate, carrageenan, cacboxymethyl cellulose) in different concentration (1.0%, 1.5%, 2.0%, 2.5%). The total chlorophyll content (mg/100g), citral content (%) were estimated. Results revealed that vapor steaming at 130^oC in 15s, drying at 50^oC in 6 hours to 6.5% moisture content, grinding and coating with 2.0% of β-cyclodextrin were appropriated for lemongrass dried powder production.

Keywords: Lemongrass, Dried powder, Chlorophyll, Citral, β‐cyclodextrin, Sodium alginate, Carrageenan, Cacboxymethyl cellulose