KINGDOM OF CAMBODIA

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION, YOUTH AND SPORT

INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY OF CAMBODIA (ITC)
HIGHER EDUCATION IMPROVEMENT PROJECT (HEIP)
CREDIT NO.: 6221-KH

Progress Report
February 2023

Ms. PHEAP Davin

Research Assistant of HEIP-ITC-SGA# 08

Under

Improving Research in STEM and Agriculture

HEIP
 Table of Contents

I. Introduction ............................................................................................................................................. 2

1. Background.......................................................................................................................................... 2

2. Objectives of Research ........................................................................................................................ 2

II. Progress ................................................................................................................................................... 3

1. Literature review.................................................................................................................................. 3

2. Experiment........................................................................................................................................... 6

I. Previous Work Design ............................................................................................................................ 7

II. Next Month Progress............................................................................................................................... 7

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 I. Introduction

1. Background
Spice is a plant-based product that is used to flavor food while cooking and has aromatic. On the
other hand, seasoning is a combination of several flavoring ingredients, including sugars, salts, spices,
and/or herbs. Consequently, spice might be considered a subset of seasoning including combination
nutrition such as protein, carbohydrate, lipid, fiber, starch, and mineral which is good for health. The
physicochemical quality of seasoning includes moisture content, water activity, color, pH, and ash
content. In general kinds of seasoning products are slightly imported from other countries. The seasoning
powder is spice mixed that usually has a long shelf life due to its low water content. It can be applied to
various types of food, for example added to dishes/ culinary, snacks, bakeries and processed meats.
Spicy sour taste’s ingredient have discovered that some components found in galangal root, lemongrass
and kaffir lime leaves, which are major ingredients of the soup, are effective in inhibiting tumors in the
digestive tract. In addition, other ingredients include chili, onion, and garlic which are natural
antimicrobial, antioxidant compounds with health benefits (Suwankanit et al., 2014). Therefore this
report would like to optimize the radio of those ingredients to make the best tasting of spicy sour taste
seasoning. In this research seasoning powder was made from two kinds of sourness raw materials, i.e.;
green tamarind powder and river-leaf creeper powder.

2. Objectives of Research

The objectives of this research is to ptimization the formulation of dried spicy sour seasoning with the
following subobjective :
1. Determinations of nutrition and physic-chemical properties from fresh raw materials
and after dried such as (pH, moisture, ash, water activity, color, protein, carbohydrate,
mineral, fiber, and fat)
2. Study on sensory evaluation on radio of spicy and sour taste
3. Study on shelf life of selected product
• Microorganism: Total plate count, Total yeast and mold
• Physico-chemical: pH, water activities, color, moisture peroxide value

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II. Progress

1. Literature review

1.1. Definition of spices and seasoning

Spices have been an essential part in human life for thousands of years. They are used at a domestic
and industrial level as flavoring, preservation, and coloring agent in nutraceutical, pharmaceutical, and
cosmetics products (Shabir Ahmad et al., 2021). Moreover, the term "seasoning" encompasses all aromatic
compounds used to enhance the flavor of food products. They are substances with one or more spices or spice
extractives that, when added to food during production, preparation, or just before serving, enhance the dish's
inherent flavor and boost consumer approval (Stephens et al.).
1.2. Drying methods

Drying is the oldest method of preserving food. Throughout history, the sun, the wind, and a smoky
fire were used to remove water from fruits, meats, grains, and herbs. By definition, food dehydration is the
process of removing water from food by circulating hot air through it, which prohibits the growth of enzymes
and bacteria. Dried foods are tasty, nutritious, lightweight, easy to prepare, and easy to store and use. The
energy input is less than what is needed to freeze or can, and the storage space is minimal compared with that
needed for canning jars and freeze containers. The nutritional value of food is only minimally affected by
drying (Ahmed et al., 2013).
1.3. Sensory evaluation

Sensory evaluation is a scientific method used to evoke, measure, analyze and interpret reactions to
those characteristics of foods and materials as they are perceived by the senses of sight, smell, taste, touch,
and hearing. The discipline of hedonic response flourished rapidly in the 20th century, along with the growth
of the food processing industries. This includes a series of techniques needed for accurate measurements of
human reactions to food, eventually persuading consumers of perceptions. Moreover, sensory evaluation has
emerged as an essential component of food product development, and standards are now at an advanced stage
for establishing, testing, analyzing, and interpreting sensory outcomes. In certain cases, sensory evaluation
was used to estimate the shelf-life of food products as the product’s sensory properties depreciate ahead of the
microbial quality (Sharif et al., 2017).
1.4. Physicochemical properties and Nutritional

 Color

Color measurement of food products has been used as an indicator of other quality attributes, such as
flavor and pigment contents, as it is easier, quicker and is well associated with other physicochemical
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properties. Color is one of the characteristics of product quality most commonly assessed in post-harvest
handing and in science and production in food manufacturing (Pathare et al., 2013).
 pH

A substance's pH is used to identify whether it is acidic or basic. The pH scale ranges from 0 to 14,
with 0 being a strong acid, 7 representing neutral (water), and 14 representing a strong base (Vijayakumar and
Adedeji, 2017). The pH value of spice mix as range from 3.04 to 4.11 if pH values are too low or too high
prevent microbial development. (Modi et al., 2006)
 Moisture contents

Moisture content is one of the most commonly measured properties of food materials for a variety of
reasons, including defining the maximum or minimum amount of water that must be present in certain types
of food, calculating the cost of many foods based on the amount of water they contain, and evaluating the
food's quality, including texture, taste, appearance, and stability (Afify et al., 2017). The value of moisture
content in spice mix was 6.81.9 (Modi et al., 2006) and in other spices such as black, and white paper was
range from 1.7% to 12.5% and 3.4% to 13.1%
 Ash contents

The inorganic residue left after the ignition or complete oxidation of organic materials in a food is
known as ash. The ash content of a food is a measure of the total quantity of minerals present, whereas the
mineral content is a measure of the amount of specific inorganic components present, such as calcium,
sodium, and potassium (Afify et al., 2017). Ash content is mix spice study of Modi et al., 2006 was found 7.2
0.2. In other study, the ash value in curry powder was found 8% (Inchuen et al., 2009).
 Fiber contents

The functional properties of dietary fiber are including the water retention capacity (WRC), the
swelling capacity (Sw), the fat retention capacity (FAC), antioxidant activity and prebiotic activity are
associated with the physicochemical characteristics of cell wall polysaccharides, varying according to their
composition. Dietary fiber with a high WRC can be utilized as a functional ingredient to avoid syneresis and
adjust the viscosity and texture of some designed foods, whereas dietary fiber with a high FAC can help to
stabilize fat in emulsion-based products. Soluble dietary fiber is linked to shivering in the stomach and a rise
in the viscosity of the digesta (Rivas et al., 2021). The fiber in curry seasoning was 9% studied by (Inchuen et
al., 2009)
 Lipid contents

Lipids are generally defined by their solubility characteristics rather than by some common structural
feature. Simple, complex, and derived lipids are the three types of lipids found in meals. Foods' lipid content
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varies greatly, however quantification is necessary due to regulatory requirements, nutritional value, and
functional qualities (by Paper FAO). The lipid content value in curry powder was found 4% (Inchuen et al.,
2009). The study of Modi et al., 2006 was found 21.41.1.
 Protein

Amino acids, which number in the hundreds or thousands, are the building blocks of proteins. A
protein molecule is composed of 20 different types of amino acids that are joined by peptide bonds (Khan et
al., 2017). The Kjeldahl method is the mostly used official method (AOAC 960.52, LMBG § 35 L17.00-15,
SLMB 14/3.2.1,) to determine nitrogen and protein content of food and feed products. (Kjeldahl and System).
Protein of seasoning powder made from fermented whole fish were 32.52% (Mahendradattal et al., 2007)
 Carbohydrate

Two main role of carbohydrate in food are as energy source, fillers and thickener (starch), texturisers
(cellulose, hemicellulose, and pectin fibre), and as sweetener (sugar) (Birch, 2017). The Carbohydrate of
seasoning powder made from fermented whole fish were 20.29% (Mahendradattal et al., 2007)
1.5. Microorganism

 Total plate count

The total plate count (TPC) is a design that represents the level, total quantity, or counted
microorganisms present in a product. This count includes both pathogens and nonpathogens and is used to
evaluate the sanitary quality of the food produced. Plate count agar can be used to determine the total plate
count. This is not a selective microbiological growth medium (Hanum et al., 2018). Total Plate Count was
enumerated by pour plate method on plate count agar. Microbial that study on 3 deference spice such as
turmeric. Red pepper and coriander found that the value of TPC was 8.18×10 2, 2.06×103 and 5.26×102 cfu/g
respectively (Parveen et al., 2014).
 Total yeast and molds

` Potato Dextrose Agar (PDA) is used for the cultivation of fungi. Potato Dextrose Agar (PDA) is a
general purpose medium for yeasts and molds that can be supplemented with acid or antibiotics to inhibit
bacterial growth. It is recommended for plate count methods for foods, dairy products and testing cosmetics.
PDA can be used for growing clinically significant yeast and molds. The nutritionally rich base (potato
infusion) encourages mold sporulation and pigment production in some dermatophytes (Kheyrodin et al.,
2018). Yeast and Mould Counts were carried out by spread plate technique on potato dextrose agar (PDA)
media (Parveen et al., 2014).
Microbiological quality of spice mix formulation was assessed by enumerating standard plate counts,
yeasts and moulds using standard procedures of APHA (2001) (Modi et al., 2006). The International
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Microbiological Standard recommended limits for bacteria contaminants in spices are in the range of 10 1 to
105 cfu/g for total microbial plate count and 101 to 103 cfu/g for yeast and mould (Parveen et al., 2014)

2. Experiment
The experiment was conducted with different 8 spices including Chili, Onion, Galangal,
Mushroom, Garlic, River-leaf creeper, Green tamarind, and Shrimpe. Those spices were dried at 65 ºC until
dried. After drying, optimized the radio of those ingredients for spicy sour taste production.

Tests/Test Results Pictures Remarks

conditions
Protein contents - Range from 0.22-20.13% (fresh) and
2.84-74.85% (dried)

Lipid contents - Range from 0.22-20.13% (fresh) and

2.84-74.85% (dried)

Pre-test sensory - The best formulation of the pre-test

evaluation sensory evaluation was the radio
(1:1.5:3) of green tamarind and River-
leaf creeper sourness

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 I. Previous Work Design

Activities W1 W2 W3 W4 Remark
Writing public paper and thesis
To be completed

Writing and defense proposal

Done

Sensory evaluation of spicy sour seasoning

To be completed

pH and color analysis of fresh and dried ingredients

of spicy sour seasoning Done

Protein and lipid analysis of raw material and dried

spices of ingredients Done

II. Next Month Progress

Activities W1 W2 W3 W4 Remark
Writing public paper and thesis

Writing abstract and submission for join scientific

day’s conference
Sensory evaluation of spicy sour seasoning

Fiber analysis of all raw material and 8 spices

ingredients of spicy sour seasoning
Determination the data analysis of physicochemical
and nutritional in all ingredients

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