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Extraction and quantification of main pigments in pesto sauces

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Abstract

Pesto is a widely diffused Italian pasta sauce, whose main ingredient is basil. Since its appearance is a key factor for marketing, the determination of its pigment content is of fundamental interest. To this aim, a method for the determination of pesto pigments by C18-HPLC is proposed. Only β-carotene was determined directly by Vis-spectrophotometry, as a consequence of sample purification over a silica cartridge. The proposed method is reliable allowing, for the first time, an easy determination of chlorophylls, pheophytins, lutein and β-carotene in a complex matrix such as pesto. The results show great differences in pigment composition among the samples, with pheophytins as the main components. Only non-thermally processed product show appreciable chlorophyll content as a consequence of the different production technique. Principal Component Analysis performed on the pigment contents showed great variability among the different samples.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Via J. F. Kennedy 17, 42100, Reggio Emilia, Italy

    Francesca Masino, Alessandro Ulrici & Andrea Antonelli

Authors
  1. Francesca Masino
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  2. Alessandro Ulrici
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  3. Andrea Antonelli
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Correspondence to Andrea Antonelli.

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Masino, F., Ulrici, A. & Antonelli, A. Extraction and quantification of main pigments in pesto sauces. Eur Food Res Technol 226, 569–575 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00217-007-0572-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00217-007-0572-5

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