Moisture sorption characteristics of ready-to-eat snack food enriched with purslane leaves.

Green leafy vegetables are important part of our
regular diet that provides us with essential nutrients necessary
to support human life and health. Since these are
produced in surplus and have limited shelf-life, preservation
of vegetables can help to prevent wastage and increase
nutrient availability in the diet during off-season. Purslane
leaves, rich in micronutrients were dried using tray dryer at
60 ± 2 �C for 7 h. and incorporated at 20% level in
khakhra. Organoleptic and physico-chemical properties of
the product were evaluated. Further, the sorption properties
of khakhra, were studied at 27 ± 2 �C over a range of
water activity of 0.10–0.92. Several models were chosen to
fit sorption behavior, but the Peleg model showed the best
fit. The present study in fact provides a platform to
understand the rationalities behind the physico-chemical
changes in the product, which, in turn, helps in predicting
the best suitable packaging material for storage in addition
to the stability of the product.