Influence of natural colour blends of freeze-dried Gac aril and pulp on the quality of whey protein-mixed gelatin-based chewables

Gelatin gummy jelly is a chewable snack with attractive synthetic colour and flavour. The use of natural carotenoid colourant, found in Gac aril or pulp, potentially benefits consumer health. The objectives of this study were to formulate gummy prototypes designed with varying levels of gelatin, sucrose, and glucose syrup, to vary the addition of whey protein concentrate (WPC) and freeze-dried (FD) Gac aril and pulp to the selected prototype, and to investigate changes in coloured WPC-mixed gelatin gummy during storage. The prototype containing gelatin, sucrose, and glucose syrup at 10, 50, and 40%, respectively, was selected based on its hardness, gumminess, and chewiness values. The addition of WPC (0.75%) to the selected prototype increased the values of hardness, springiness, and gumminess but reduced the values of cohesiveness and chewiness. Coloured WPC-mixed gelatin gummy with blends (0.5 g/100 g) of FD Gac aril and pulp at a ratio of 75:25 appeared yellow-orange and received the highest acceptance score. The quality of coloured WPC-mixed gelatin changed to a dull colour and a softer texture gel during storage. Therefore, Gac-coloured WPC-mixed gelatin gummy improvement for colour and texture qualities should be of concern for shelf-life stability.