Technical Paper
Chemical and Sensory Characteristics of a Hydroponic Sweetpotato During Storage
2001-07-09
2001-01-2278
Sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas) is an economic root crop that has been selected as a candidate crop to be grown on space missions by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Mission. This study determined the chemical and sensory behavior of hydroponically grown sweet potato (TU-82-155) during storage. Cured hydroponically grown sweet potatoes (HSP) were stored in palletized crates at 13°C and 80% RH for 42 days. Samples were randomly withdrawn at 0, 7, 14, 28, 35 and 42 days of storage for chemical, instrumental, and sensory analyses. Judges utilized a “just-about-right” attribute scale with five categories to assess the intensity of five sensory attributes. The HSP had a high moisture throughout storage, reflecting an overall mean of 82±2%. The mean fat and protein contents were 0.6±0.5% and 1.8±2%, respectively. The mean carbohydrate content was 15.2±3%, and the ash content ranged from 0.5±0.1% to 0.5±0.8%.