Process optimisation of Gulab jamun, an Indian traditional sweet,using sugar substitutes

<p align="justify">Models capable of predicting the product quality of Gulab jamun using sugar and a sugar substitute
have been developed using response surface methodology
(RSM) and applied to determine the optimum processing
conditions. Box Behnken design was used considering
three independent variables, namely concentration (B) of
syrup, its temperature and time of soaking, each at three
different levels. The dependent variable or response measured for each treatment was a sensory score for overall
quality, which is taken as a combination of the sensory
impact of colour, appearance, texture, mouthfeel, taste
and aroma. According to RSM, the optimum score for
overall quality attained for Gulab jamun prepared with
sugar was 7.7, obtained at processing conditions of 51B
syrup, 54 C and 4 h soaking, whereas for the Gulab
jamun prepared with the sugar substitute, sorbitol, a maximum overall quality score of 8.0 was obtained at processing conditions of 54B syrup, 65 C and 3 h soaking.
These processing conditions were found to correlate with
those of experimental conditions.</p>