Abstract:
A well-liked and adaptable non-dairy substitute that has become very popular
in recent years is coconut milk beverages. The main objective of this study
is to optimize the roasting process of barley and formulate a dairy-free and
lactose-free beverage. Ready-to-serve beverages were prepared with the
incorporation of roasted barley. To the mixture in different ratios and roasted
barley powder and other ingredients, including xanthan gum for stabilization,
sugar, coco powder and chocolate flavour were added. The mixture was then
filled into clean, sterilized glass bottles and sealed manually. Afterward,
sealed bottles were sterilized. Prepared samples were kept at room
temperature (29 ºC) for a one-month period and analysed. The produced
beverages were evaluated for physiochemical and sensory parameters, yeast
and mold count and total plate count stored once a week using the sensory
evaluation for different treatments was carried out using 9-point hedonic
scale testing for taste, texture, colour, odour, flavour, and overall
acceptability. The data were analysed using SPSS software at the 0.05
significant level. No significant quality changes of beverage samples were
observed during storage. Based on the sensory evaluation, the beverage at
230⁰C, 40 min and 228g:6g had the highest mean score for overall
acceptability and there was no microbial count detected at one-month
storage. The study concludes that the optimized roasting process of barley,
combined with specific ratios of coconut milk, results in a stable,
nutritionally rich, and well-accepted dairy-free beverage with sustained
quality over a one-month storage period.
