Abstract

Microencapsulation by spray drying is one of the most common methods used to obtain food material powders. In this study, different gums (maltodextrin [MD], gum arabic [GA], and mixtures of MD:GA [60:40] at various concentrations [0–10% w/w]) were used to microencapsulate Hibiscus sabdariffa (Roselle) extracts by spray drying. The yield, physicochemical properties, and antioxidant characteristics (total monomeric anthocyanins [TMAs], total phenolic compounds [TPCs], and antioxidant capacity [AC]) of the microencapsulated Roselle powders (RP) were evaluated. The highest RP yield (73.3 ± 3.3%) was obtained with the 3% MD:GA blend. The red color (a*) average for all powders (39.9 ± 2.0) decreased as the gum concentration increased. The 3% MD:GA RP showed the highest amount of TMAs (539.19 ± 13.27 mg cyaniding-3-glucoside equivalents/100 g) and TPCs (3,801.6 ± 125.9 mg of gallic acid equivalents/100 g of powder). The highest AC was observed with a 5% GA RP (1498.5 ± 44.0 mg of Trolox equivalents/100 g of powder).

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