Osmotic dehydration of wild garlic in sucrose–salt solution

Due to its nutritional and nutraceutical qualities, wild garlic (Allium ursinum L.) has great potential for use in the food and pharmaceutical industries. The availability of this plant is limited to the spring season, and it is perishable immediately after harvest. Osmotic dehydration (OD) is verified as an effective pre-treatment to improve sustainability by reducing the water content of raw material with minimal negative effect on its nutritive and sensorial qualities. In this study, OD of wild garlic leaves in aqueous solution of sucrose and salt was analysed at three temperatures and after diverse immersion times. The effects of the processing time and temperature on the dry matter content, water loss, and solid gain were evaluated using response surface methodology and analysis of variance. Some components in the samples were determined before and after OD. The results showed that during OD, the dry matter content of wild garlic increased from 7.91 ± 1.08% to 51.51 ± 1.34%. The maximum achieved values for water loss (0.6189 ± 0.0146 g/g i.s.) and solid gain (0.2417 ± 0.0146 g/g i.s.) indicated a good dehydration level. In the osmotically dehydrated wild garlic, the amount of analysed minerals decreased, sodium and sugar increased, and the content of protein, cellulose, and fat did not change – compared to the fresh sample.