Abstract

Durian cv. Monthong was dried by using controlled low power microwave at atmospheric pressure. Although the hardness of durian chips was higher than that obtained from microwave drying in vacuum, it was comparable to the hardness of conventional products. According to Hunter Lab color parameters, durian surfaces became lighter but their yellowness was decreased after the microwave drying. Compared between 16 and 27 W irradiations, the higher power led to the increase in lightness and yellowness. Cross-sectional micrographs revealing the porous structure confirmed that a lower hardness was obtained in the case of 16 W. © 2012 The Korean Society of Food Science and Technology and Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.