Desarrollo de una Propuesta Gastronómica con Productos Liofilizados: Calabacín (Cucurbita pepo), Zapallo (Cucurbita moschata duchesne) y Garbanzos (Cicer arietinum)

Abstract

This study investigates the nutritional and organoleptic composition of zucchini (Cucurbita pepo), pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata duchesne), and chickpea (Cicer arietinum). The nutritional benefits are analyzed, emphasizing the content of vitamins, minerals and other essential nutrients, also considering its organoleptic characteristics. In addition, the freeze-drying technique is explored, a process that allows the long-term preservation of food without a significant loss of its nutritional and organoleptic properties. This process includes freezing and vacuum dehydration steps. The study details the experimental procedure from the preparation of the pulps to freeze-drying, describing the conditions and parameters that ensure the efficiency of the process and maintain the quality of the product by controlling moisture loss. In addition, a sensory evaluation of the freeze-dried products is carried out, comparing them with their non-freeze-dried counterparts in salty and sweet preparations. The results show that preparations with freeze-dried products are generally better accepted in terms of their organoleptic characteristics, except for sauces.