The Influence of Gelatin, Aloe Gel and Chitosan Coatings on Physicochemical Characteristics of Fresh-cut Persian Shallot during Storage

Persian Shallot is a vegetable and at the same time a rare medicinal plant with a short shelf life. Edible coatings increased shelf life and maintain the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of some vegetable crops in the post-harvest stage. In this study, the effect of different amounts of chitosan (0.5, 1 and 2%), gelatin (0.25, 0.5 and 1%) and aloe gel (50, 75 and 100%) as edible coatings on fresh-cut persian shallot during 14 days of storage under refrigerated conditions (4±1 °C and 75-80% relative humidity) were investigated. The weight loss, pH, flavor index and total soluble solids during storage in coating treatments compared to control samples showed significantly less increase and amount of ascorbic acid, titratable acidity, pyruvic acid, total antioxidant capacity, total phenol, and soluble carbohydrates, showed significantly less decline. In this study, it was observed that edible coatings of chitosan (2%), gelatin (1%) and aloe gel (100%) had the greatest effect on maintaining the shelf life and quality properties of fresh-cut Persian shallot, respectively. According to the results obtained of this study, chitosan coating (2%) is recommended as a more suitable coating for fresh-cut Persian shallot.