Benković Maja, Srečec Siniša, Bauman Ingrid, Ježek Damir, Karlović Sven, Kremer Dario, Karlović Ksenija, Erhatić Renata
University of Zagreb, Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, Pierottijeva 6, HR-10000 Zagreb, Croatia.
Križevci College of Agriculture, M. Demerca 1, HR-48260 Križevci, Croatia.
Food Technol Biotechnol. 2016 Dec;54(4):432-440. doi: 10.17113/ftb.54.04.16.4475.
Carob tree ( L.) is a perennial leguminous evergreen tree native to the coastal regions of the Mediterranean basin and is considered to be an important component of vegetation for economic and environmental reasons. Two constituents of the pod, pulp and seeds, can be used as feed or in food production. In this study, drying characteristics, texture and microstructure of carob pods were studied. Three different carob samples were prepared: whole carob pod, carob pod parts and carob seed. The drying experiments and the modelling showed that carob seeds had the highest drying rate, followed by pod parts and the whole, intact carob fruit. Texture studies showed that the maximum compression force depended on the area of the carob fruit on which compression tests were performed. The seeds showed the highest compression force, followed by the stem zone, the tip and the centre of the fruit. Differences in drying behaviour and texture of carob pods can successfully be interpreted by the micromorphology of the carob pods and seeds. Determining the drying rate, maximum compressive force and micromorphological traits is of great importance for further carob processing ( milling, sieving, carob bean gum production or usage in food or feed products).
角豆树（学名：Ceratonia siliqua L.）是一种多年生豆科常绿树，原产于地中海盆地的沿海地区，由于经济和环境原因，被认为是植被的重要组成部分。角豆荚的两种成分，果肉和种子，可用于饲料或食品生产。在本研究中，对角豆荚的干燥特性、质地和微观结构进行了研究。制备了三种不同的角豆样品：完整的角豆荚、角豆荚部分和角豆种子。干燥实验和模型表明，角豆种子的干燥速率最高，其次是荚部，完整的角豆果实干燥速率最低。质地研究表明，最大压缩力取决于进行压缩试验的角豆果实区域。种子显示出最高的压缩力，其次是果柄区、果尖和果实中心。角豆荚干燥行为和质地的差异可以通过角豆荚和种子的微观形态成功解释。确定干燥速率、最大压缩力和微观形态特征对于角豆的进一步加工（研磨、筛分、角豆树胶生产或用于食品或饲料产品）非常重要。
