Indian Journal of Natural Products and Resources

Vol. 2(3), September 2011, pp. 354-357

Nutritional composition and processed products of

Quince (Cydonia oblonga Mill.)

Rakesh Sharma1*, V K Joshi

1 and J C Rana

2

1Department of Food Science and Technology, Dr Y S Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan 173 230

Himachal Pradesh, India 2NBPGR Regional Station, Phagli, Shimla-171 004, Himachal Pradesh

Received 28 September 2010; Accepted 4 May 2011

The present investigation was undertaken with the aim to develop processed products from Cydonia oblonga Mill.

commonly known as Quince. It is the cheaper, highly nutritious underutilized fruit of sub-Himalayan regions which has

great economic and medicinal potential. The fruits are known to be hypoglycaemic, anti-inflammatory and anticarcinogenic

and act as a tonic for heart and brain. Fruits were analyzed for various physico-chemical properties. Analysis of the edible

part of the fruit gave: moisture, 84.6; total soluble solids, 14.2; total sugars, 9.0; pectin, 1.8; crude fibre, 1.6; and tannins

0.8%, respectively and contains 16.8 mg/100 g ascorbic acid. Quince is also a good source of minerals like potassium,

phosphorous and calcium. Processed products like jam and jelly were prepared and assessed for their nutritive quality and

acceptability. The total soluble solids of jam and jelly were recorded to be 70° and 66° Brix. It was found that quince jelly

contained more amount of ascorbic acid (12.60 mg/100 g) and pectin (1.32%) compared to jam. Organoleptic evaluation of

processed products showed good acceptability. Overall, quince jelly was found best on the basis of nutritive and

organoleptic qualities.

Keywords: Cydonia oblonga, Jam, Jelly, Quince, Processed products, Value addition.

IPC code; Int. cl. (2011.01) A61K 36/00, A23L 1/064

Introduction

Quince (Cydonia oblonga Mill.) is a shrub or a

small tree, native of Iran and Turkey, almost

naturalized in semi-cultivated lands in a scattered

manner across the sub-Himalayan tract at an altitude

of 1000-2000 m above msl1,2

. It is also called as

bihi dana or bamchount in Kashmir valley3. It is

resistant to woolly aphid and nematodes but

susceptible to fire blight and excess lime and cold.

The fruits, which are pear or apple-shaped, are golden

yellow in colour, juicy, fragrant, sub-acid or sour in

taste and contain a large number of plano-convex,

mucilage-coated seeds, closely packed in two vertical

rows4,5

. The peel is covered with abundant hairs,

which disappears with fruit ripening. Due to

astringent taste, fruits are usually eaten after cooking

or baking, or are made into preserves and jellies by

the local people of North-East Himalayan region6.

Quince is a climacteric fruit and requires a proper

ripening process at 20°C for processing purposes.

These are harvested at a time similar to most winter

pear cultivars i.e. during October-November. There is

no specific maturity index for quince fruit; however

harvest begins when fruit change their ground colour

from deep-green to a lighter-green7.

Quince has aromatic, astringent and cooling

properties and acts as a tonic for heart and brain. The

mucilage is used as an external application for scalds

and ulcers. The dried pits of its fruit are used as

remedy for soreness of throat and relieving cough. In

the indigenous systems of medicine, the quince is

used in treating diarrhoea, dysentery and

constipation6,8,9

. Quince juice proves to be very

effective against diabetes and urinary problems. It

also helps against respiratory disorders like cough,

cold and asthma. Quince is used to make jam, jelly

and puddings in many parts of the world5,8,10,11

.

Therefore, efforts were made to study the

nutritional composition of quince fruit grown in hilly

region of Himachal Pradesh and its suitability to

prepare various processed products.

___________

*Correspondent author:

E-mail: drrakes@gmail.com, drrakeshsharma@yahoo.co.in

Phone: +91-9418061369 (Mob.)

SHARMA et al.: NUTRITIONAL COMPOSITION AND PROCESSED PRODUCTS OF QUINCE

355

Materials and Methods The fruits of Cydonia (Plate 1) were collected from

National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources Regional

Station, Shimla and brought to the Department of

Food Science and Technology, Dr Y S Parmar

University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan

to study the nutritional composition and processed

products of quince. Some of the parameters were

estimated at the Regional Station, National Bureau of

Plant Genetic Resources, Shimla.

Physico-chemical and nutritional parameters of fruit

The physical parameters analyzed were weight

(mean of 10 fruits), diameter (measured with the help

of Vernier caliper), edible portion (%), peel (%) and

seed (%). For chemical and nutritional parameters, the

edible portion (pulp) of fruit was analyzed for

attributes like moisture, total soluble solids (TSS),

titratable acidity, sugars, ascorbic acid, pectin, crude

fibre, tannins and minerals by using standard

analytical procedures12-14

.

Preparation and evaluation of processed products

The pulp from the fruit was extracted by hot break

method. The extracted pulp was used for preparation

of processed products i.e. jam and jellies. The

products were prepared according to the standard

methods. For the preparation of Cydonia jam, sound

fruits are sorted, washed in running water, peeled,

cored, sliced and heated with water (@10%) to extract

the pulp. Fruit pulp is then cooked with requisite

quantity of sugar to a thick consistency until the total

soluble solids (TSS) reached to 68%. However, in

case of jelly, sliced fruits are boiled with water to

extract the pectin-fruit extract. Sugar is added after

performing pectin test to calculate the quantity of

sugar required. Cooking is done until total soluble

solids reached to 65%. According to FPO

specifications, 1 kg fruit pulp, 750 g sugar and 2.0 g

citric acid were used to prepare the jam, whereas, in

case of jelly, 1 kg pectin extract, 800 g sugar and

2.0 g citric acid were used. Near to the end point,

permitted colors and requisite quantities of citric acid

and flavourings are added. The product is then filled

hot in pre-sterilized jars up to the brim. On cooling

waxing is done and lid is closed.

The products were also evaluated for various

physico-chemical and sensory quality characteristics.

Physico-chemical parameters of jam and jelly like

TSS, titratable acidity, sugars, ascorbic acid, pectin

and ash were estimated using standard analytical

methods12,13

. Sensory quality was got done by a panel

of 10 semi-trained judges on 9-point hedonic scale15

.

Triplicate determinations were made for each attribute

and average values of the parameters were reported.

Results and Discussion

Proximate composition of quince fruit

Quince is one of the most important underutilized

fruit species which gives fruits with high nutrient

value and positive influence on human health. It was

found that the fruit of quince consists of: pulp, 90.6;

peel, 4.4 and core with seeds, 5.0%, respectively.

Analysis of the edible part of the fruit is given in

Table 1. The juice contains malic acid (1.2%) and a

small quantity of tartaric acid. The fruit is also a good

source of ascorbic acid (16.8 mg/100 g) and minerals

like potassium, phosphorous and calcium which

depicted its nutritive value (Table 1). Chemical and organoleptic quality of processed products

(Jam and jelly)

Jam is a product made by boiling fruit pulp with

sufficient sugar to a reasonably thick consistency,

firm enough to hold the tissues in position. However,

jelly is a semi-solid product prepared by boiling clear,

strained pectin-containing fruit extract, free from

pulp, after addition of sugar and acids to a stage at

which a clear gel forms. According to Fruit Products

Order, 1955(Ref. 16)

, jam should contain at least 45 parts

of fruit pulp for every 55 parts of sugar and

68° B or % of total soluble solids; however jelly

should contain 65% of total soluble solids.

Plate 1 Quince fruits

INDIAN J NAT PROD RESOUR, SEPTEMBER 2011

356

The processed products of quince were analyzed

for their chemical and organoleptic quality and the

data is presented in Table 2. The total soluble solids

of jam and jelly were recorded to be 70° and 66° B,

respectively. Quince jelly contained more titratable

acidity (0.80% as malic acid) as compared to 0.72%

in jam. The total sugar and reducing sugar contents of

jam and jelly were recorded to 46.10 and 28.20%, and

42.60 and 22.40%, respectively. It was found that

quince jelly contained more amount of ascorbic acid

(12.60 mg/100g) and pectin (1.32%) compared to

jam. Further, both the products of quince (jam and

jelly) contained almost equal amounts of ash content,

which is a measure of the total amount of minerals

like calcium, potassium, phosphorous, etc. Further,

the data presented in Table 2 revealed that both the

products were rated acceptable by the panelists,

however quince jelly was adjudged best for colour,

taste, flavour and overall acceptability.

Conclusion Conclusively, it emerges that quince is highly

nutritious underutilized fruit crop which can play a

great role in human health. The analyzed nutrient

content showed that quince jam and jelly are rich

source of malic acid and ascorbic acid, beside other

phytochemicals. Hence, considering nutritive value as

well organoleptic qualities of the prepared products

i.e. jam and jelly, these can be commercialized and

popularized for human consumption.

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Table 1 Proximate composition of quince fruit

Parameters Values (Mean ± SD#)

Fruit weight (g) 386.0 ± 5.0

Diameter (cm) 8.5 ± 1.2

Pulp/edible portion (%) 90.6 ± 2.4

Peel (%) 4.4 ± 0.8

Seed (%) 5.0 ± 0.8

Moisture (%) 84.6 ± 2.2

Total soluble solids (o B) 14.2 ± 0.5

Titratable acidity (as % malic acid) 1.2 ± 0.8

Reducing sugars (%) 5.0 ± 1.0

Total sugars (%) 9.0 ± 1.0

Tannins (%) 0.8 ± 0.02

Pectin (%) 1.8 ± 0.1

Vitamin C (mg/100 g) 16.8 ± 0.8

Crude fibre (%) 1.6 ± 0.05

Minerals (mg/100 g):

Potassium 248.0 ± 0.02

Phosphorous 26.0 ± 0.04

Sodium 8.0± 0.03

Calcium 18.0± 0.02

# SD= Standard deviation

Table 2 Chemical and organoleptic quality of quince

jam and jelly

Parameters Jam Jelly

Chemical

TSS (oB) 70.0 66.0

Titratable acidity (%MA) 0.72 0.80

Ascorbic acid (mg/ 100 g) 11.20 12.60

Total Sugars (%) 46.10 42.60

Reducing Sugars (%) 28.20 22.40

Pectin (%) 1.20 1.32

Ash (%) 2.80 2.78

Organoleptic*

Colour 7.40 7.60

Flavour 7. 00 7.36

Body 7.20 7.40

Taste 6.86 7.20

Overall acceptability 7.00 7.40

*Organoleptic score for various parameters on 9-point hedonic

scale

SHARMA et al.: NUTRITIONAL COMPOSITION AND PROCESSED PRODUCTS OF QUINCE

357

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