The Inflluence of Refractance Window Drying on Qualitative Properties of Kiwifruit Slices

In this research, effect of Refractance Window (RW) drying on the quality properties of the kiwifruit samples was investigated. Drying temperatures of 80-100 degrees C, slice thickness of 0.8-2.4 mm and Mylar thickness of 100-300 mu m were the independent variables and different qualitative attributes including drying duration, textural hardness, colour, rehydration ratio and organoleptic properties were responses monitored in each situation. Drying temperature was the most important factor contributed to quality features of RW dried kiwifruits with significant effects on all properties. Similarly, slice thickness influenced nearly all quality traits except textural hardness and some colour indices. However, Mylar membrane thickness failed to affect about every qualitative property of kiwifruit samples significantly. The majority of organoleptic properties of RW dried kiwifruits, including flavour, colour, texture, shrinkage and overall acceptance, were judged to be in the range of medium to good quality (scores of 3-4) by panellists.