Evaluation of Drying Methods with Respect to Drying Kinetics, Mineral Content, and Color Characteristics of Savory Leaves

Sun, oven (50 °C), and microwave oven (700 W) drying of savory leaves ( Satureja thymbra L.) were carried out to monitor the drying kinetics, changes in mineral content, and color degradation of the product. Oven and microwave oven drying shortened the drying time over than approximately 70% and 99% when compared to the sun and oven drying methods, respectively. Fresh and dried savory leaves had high amounts of K (8875.2–28468.0 mg/kg), Ca (3681.6–9852.03 mg/kg), Mg (1388.0–3102.0 mg/kg), and P (2313.2–5045.8 mg/kg) minerals. K, Ca, P, and Mg were the most abundant elements in savory samples. Mineral content of oven-dried savory were higher than the sun and microwave dried samples. Midilli and Küçük model was shown to give a good fit to the sun and oven drying. The Midilli and Küçük, modified page and page models exhibited high coefficient of determination ( R 2 ) values ranging between 0.9995 and 0.9997, to the experimental microwave oven drying data of savory. Microwave oven drying revealed optimum color values. Oven drying resulted in a considerable decrease in color quality of savory.