The Impact of Lemon (Citrus limon) Incorporation on Arenga Palm Liquid Sugar Quality

Abstract

The use of natural food additives such as lemon slices in the manufacture of palm liquid sugar can be done to improve sensory quality with a variant of sour taste and improve the physiological function of palm liquid sugar products. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of adding different concentrations of lemon slices on the sensory properties of palm liquid sugar and to determine the concentration of lemon slices that produces palm liquid sugar with the best sensory properties. The research was conducted with a non-factorial Completely Randomized Block Design with 4 replications. The treatment consisted of 6 levels of lemon concentration, namely F0 (0% lemon), F1 (5% lemon), F2 (10% lemon), F3 (15% lemon), F4 (20% lemon), and F5 (25% lemon). The results showed that the addition of lemon pieces affected the sensory properties of Arenga palm liquid sugar. The best treatment for palm liquid sugar is the F2 (lemon 10%) with a brix value of 62.63º   brix, pH 5.52, color score 2.8; sweetness score 3.6; sourness score 2.9; bitter aftertaste 2.6; aroma score 3; and appearance score 4.4 These findings exposed that incorporation of lemon potentially improved sensory and functional properties of Arenga palm liquid sugar.