The Impact of the Use of Vacuum and Calcium Lactate on the Osmotic Dehydration of Papaya with Isomaltulose Solution

Papayas are one of the most consumed fruits in the world. Enriching papayas with isomaltulose and calcium through osmotic dehydration (OD) is a noteworthy strategy for providing these substances to consumers. The present study evaluated the influence of the application of vacuum and the addition of calcium lactate in an osmotic solution of isomaltulose (35%) on the OD of papaya. Papaya cubes with an edge length of 10 mm were immersed in osmotic solutions, with or without calcium lactate, for a total time of 300 min, with or without application of vacuum during the first 20 min, totaling four treatments. The osmotic processes reduced the moisture content (MC) and water activity and caused a change in the color of the papaya. The application of vacuum caused greater shrinkage and color change. Calcium lactate impregnation increased the water loss (WL), weight reduction (WR), hardness, and chroma of the papaya and reduced the solid gain (SG), MC and shrinkage. Therefore, OD proved to be an appealing alternative for the production of papaya predehydrated and enriched with isomaltulose and calcium.