Influence of Steeping Solution and Storage Temperature on the Color Change of Garlic

The objective of this study was to investigate the browning of garlic under different steeping conditions and storage temperatures. The brown indices of steeped garlics showed lowest values (7.3 and 7) in 25% and 50% EtOH at 7 d of storage. The degree of browning of steeped garlics was lowest (10.2 in 25% EtOH and 10.4 in 50% EtOH) in the samples soaked for 8 h at 13 d of storage. As the storage temperature was increased from 10 to 40 °C, the brown indices of garlics revealed an increasing trend relative to storage time regardless of steeping treatment. Overall, the kinetic parameters showed relatively low R² and irregular reaction constants, but the ko values showed an increasing trend with temperature under a zero-order model. The highest polyphenol content within the garlic bulbs was seen in controls (without steeping treatment, 588.9 μg/g), than 0% EtOH (water, 392.5 μg/g), than 25% EtOH (211.3 μg/g), and finally 50% EtOH (155.6 μg/g). The polyphenol oxidase activity of garlic showed a similar trend to that of polyphenol content. However, the texture properties of garlics steeped with 25% and 50% did not change. Practical Application: The garlic color preferred by consumers is a creamy-white, but this is susceptible to enzymatic browning when pre-peeled and chopped. When garlic was steeped in the 25% and 50% alcohol, the browning of garlic was prevented during storage.