Development of instant tea from Cymbopogon citrates, Zingiber officinale and moringa oleifera extracts

This work investigated the development of instant tea formulated using Cymbopogon citrates, Zingiber officinale and Moringa oleifera extracts. Fresh leaves of C. citrates and M. oleifera, and rhizopus of Z. officinale were processed into lyophilized extracts and ultimately developed into instant tea with the aid of simplex centroid mixture design. The results showed optimal extracts mixture of C. citrates (52.32%), M. oleifera (18%), and Z. officinale (29.68%) as most suitable. Prominent bio-compounds included 9,12-Octadecadienoic acid (Z,Z)-(29.54%), Ricinoleic acid (7.49%), 2-Propen-1-amine (7.29%), Z-(13,14-Epoxy)tetradec-11-en-1-ol acetate (7.19%), 9-Octadecenal, (Z)-(7.15%), and 1-Butoxy-1-isobutoxy-butane (4.20%). Antioxidants showed total phenolic (23.80 mgGAE/g), alkaloids (13.61 mg/100 g), total flavonoids (91.24 mg RE/100 g), DPPH (74.16 mu molTEAC/100 g). Phenolic profile showed epicatechin (108.2 6 mg/100 g), ferulic acid (23.41 mg/100 g), pyrogallol (30.02 mg/100 g) and quercetin (38.62 mg/100 g). Physicochemical showed packed bulk density (0.591 g/ml), pH (5.28), *L (69.25), *a (13.61) and *b (28.40). Sensory scores showed taste (90.87%), aroma (86.45%), and general acceptability index (89.84%). Fourier transformed infrared showed carbamyl (amide), cyano (nitrile), formyl (alkaynal), and aryl halides. The formulated instant tea possessed some health promoting bioactive compounds.