Investigation of pickled baby corn (Zea mays L.) fermentation

Baby corn (Zea mays L.) is a monoic annual plant belonging to maideas tribe and the grass family of Gramineae. It is a vegetable with good nutritional characteristics with a short post-harvest shelf-life in the ambient environment. Baby corn is rich source of fibre, protein, vitamin C, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium and calcium. It has high content of fermentable reducing sugars such as glucose, sucrose and fructose could serve as substrates for lactic acid fermentation thus transforming from a perishable product to more stable and value-added one. Baby corn has a great potential and great demand in international market mainly because of its freshness, taste, nutrition, free from pesticides and its multiuse. The consumption of lactic acid fermented vegetables helps enhance balanced human nutrition. Lactic acid fermentation retains all the natural plant ingredients while improving the quality, taste and aroma. Objective of this study focused on a lactic acid fermentation from baby corn by penetrating on the effect of various parameters such as blanching pre-treatment, salt: sugar immersion, fermentation to physico-chemical, microbial and sensory characteristics of pickled baby corn. Results showed that baby corn should be blanched in hot water at 95°C in 5 sec with 0.20% citric acid; fermentation in 8.0%: 2.0% salt: sugar solution in 12 days to achieve a pleasant flavour and firmness of pickled baby corn. Pickled baby corn would be easily accepted in cuisine. Production of pickle from this vegetable can improve the added value as well as to reduce post-harvest losses from this valuable source.