Volatile compounds of maari, a fermented product from baobab (<i>Adansonia digitata</i> L.) seeds

Abstract

The volatile compounds associated with baobab seeds fermentation for Maari production were extracted and analysed by Likens-Nickerson simultaneous steam distillation-extraction method and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), respectively. Furthermore, the titratable acidity, tannin content and proximate composition were evaluated. A total of 96 compounds were identified with esters, acids, alcohols and ketones being quantitatively the major groups. Fermentation led to an increase in the concentration of total volatile compounds from 121.6 in unfermented cooked seeds to 809.1 mg kg^-1 in the fermented product. Drying resulted in a significant loss of up to 80.7% of the total volatiles.

Key words: Volatile compounds, maari, baobab, fermentation.