Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Onion dehydration: a review

  • Review
  • Published:
Journal of Food Science and Technology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Onion (Allium cepa), a very commonly used vegetable, ranks third in the world production of major vegetables. Apart from imparting a delicious taste and flavour due to its pungency in many culinary preparations, it serves several medicinal purposes also. Processing and preservation of onion by suitable means is a major thrust area since a long time. The various kinds of treatments followed for dehydration of onion such as convective air drying, solar drying, fluidized bed drying, vacuum microwave drying, infrared drying and osmotic drying are reviewed here. These techniques are mainly used for preservation and value addition of onion. Several researchers have tried for decades to model the drying kinetics and quality parameters, which are also compiled here briefly.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

Abbreviations

a, b:

Empirical constants for equation (4.10)

aw :

Water activity of product

Ax :

Exchange area (m2)

C, Y:

Optical index

C’:

Thiosulphinate concentration (μmol/g)

c1, c2, c3, c4 :

Model parameter values for equation (4.11)

d1, d2, d3, d4 :

Model parameter constants for equation (4.13)

db:

Dry basis (g/g solid)

dp :

Dry matter fraction

exp:

Exponential

g1, g2, g3, g4, g5, g6 :

Model parameter values for equation (4.12)

H:

Absolute humidity (kg/kg dry basis)

K:

Reaction rate constant for equation (4.1)

k, c:

Reaction rate constant for equation (4.3)

K′:

Reaction rate constant for equation (4.8)

Ls :

Dry border strip width (m)

M:

Moisture content (% dry basis)

m1,m2,m3,m4,m5,m6 :

Model parameter constants for equation (4.14)

R:

Universal gas constant (kJ/mol Kelvin)

t:

Time

T:

The absolute temperature (Kelvin)

V:

Air flow velocity (m/s)

Vs :

Actual volume of single particle (m3)

wb:

wet basis (g water/g material)

X:

Moisture content (g/g solid)

Xx :

Amount of water removed per unit mass of dry matter through the walls x

0:

Initial states

e:

Equilibrium

p:

Product

x:

Relative to surface x

α:

Water content ratio X/X0

α0, α1, α2, α3 :

Empirical constants for equation (4.4)

β0, β1, β2, β3,β4 :

Empirical constants for equation (4.6)

δ0, δ1, δ2, δ3, δ4 :

Empirical constants for equation (4.7)

γ0, γ1, γ2, γ3 :

Empirical constants for equation (4.5)

η0, η1, η2, η3, η4 :

Empirical constants for equation (4.2)

References

  • Abbasi S, Azari S (2009) Novel microwave–freeze drying of onion slices. Int J Food Sci Technol 44:974–979

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Aguilera JM, Chirife J, Flink JM, Karel M (1975) Computer simulation of non- enzymatic browning during potato dehydration. Lebensm Wiss U Technol 8(3):128–133

    Google Scholar 

  • Akbari SH, Patel NC (2006) Optimization of parameters for good quality dehydrated onion flakes. J Food Sci Technol 43:603–606

    Google Scholar 

  • Akbari SH, Patel NC, Joshi DC (2001) Studies on dehydration of onion. ASAE International Annual Meeting. Held at Sacramento, California, USA

  • Andreotti R, Tomasicchio M, Macchiavelli L (1981) Freeze drying of carrots and onions after partial air drying. Ind Conserve 54(2):87–91

    Google Scholar 

  • Azuara E, Cortes R, Garcia HS, Berstian CI (1992) Kinetic model for osmotic dehydration and its relationship with Fick’s second law. Int J Food Sci Technol 27:239–242

    Google Scholar 

  • Banerjee SK, Maulik M, Manchanda SC, Dinda AK, Gupta SK, Maulik SK (2002) Dose-dependent induction of endogenous antioxidants in rat heart by chronic administration of garlic. Life Sci 70:1509–1518

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bennamoun L, Belhamri A (2003) Design and simulation of a solar dryer for agriculture products. J Food Eng 59:259–266

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bertin R, Blazaquez M (1986) Modeling and optimization of a dryer. Drying Technol 4(1):45–66

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Block E (1985) The chemistry of garlic and onions. Sci Am 252:94–99

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Block E (1994) Food phytochemicals for cancer prevention I. Fruits and vegetables. Huang Mou-Tuan, Osawa T, Ho Chi-Tang, and Rosen Robert T (eds.), American Chemical Symposium Series 546, p 84

  • Block E, Calvey EM, Gillies JZ, Uden P (1997) Peeling the onion. In: Johns T, Romeo JT (eds) Functionality of food phytochemicals. Plenum, New York, pp 1–30

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Brook RC, Bakker-Arkemma FW (1978) Dynamic programming for process optimization 1. An algorithm for design of multistage grain dryers. J Food Process Eng 2:199–211

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Canizares P, Gracia I, Gomez LA, Martin de Argila C, Boixeda D, Garcia A, De Rafael L (2004) Thermal degradation of allicin in garlic extracts and its implication on the inhibition of the in-vitro growth of Helicobacter pylori. Biotechnol Prog 20:32–37

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dorsch W, Wagner H (1991) New antiasthmatic drugs from traditional medicine. Int Arch Allergy Appl Immunol 94:262–265

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Elsom GK, Hide D, Salmon DM (2000) An antibacterial assay of aqueous extract of garlic against anaerobic/microaerophilic and aerobic bacteria. Microb Ecol Health Dis 12(4):81–84

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Elustondo MP, Pelegrina AH, Urbician MJ (1996) A model for dehydration rate of onions. J Food Eng 29:375–386

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • FAO (2009) Food and Agricultural Organization, Area and production data. www.fao.org. Access date 01 Dec 2009

  • Freeman GG, Whenham RJ (2006) Changes in onion (Allium cepa L.) flavour components resulting from some post-harvest processes. J Sci Food Agric 25(5):499–515

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gabel M, Pan Z, Amaratunga S (2004) Quality and safety characteristics of infrared dried onion products. Annual International Meeting Sponsored by ASAE/CSAE, Canada, 1–4

  • Gekas V, Lamberg I (1991) Determination of diffusion coefficients in volume changing systems- application in the case of potato drying. J Food Eng 13:317–326

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gelder AV (1962) Fluidized bed process for dehydration of onion, garlic and the like. US Patent 3063848

  • Gorinstein S, Drzewiecki J, Leontowicz H, Leontowicz M, Najman K, Jastrzebski Z (2005) Comparison of the bioactive compounds and antioxidant potentials of fresh and cooked Polish, Ukrainian, and Israeli garlic. J Agric Food Chem 53:2726–2732

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gummery CS (1977) A review of common onion products. Food Trade Rev 47(8):452–454

    Google Scholar 

  • Gupta CP, Gowda SJ (1976) Studies on rehydration characteristics of onion flakes. J Agric Eng ISAE 13(4):186–188

    Google Scholar 

  • Hamed MGE, Foda YH (1966) Freeze drying of onions. Z Lebensm Unters Forsh 130:220

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Holdsworth SD (1986) Advances in the dehydration of fruits and vegetables. In: McCarthy D (ed) Concentration and drying of foods. Elsevier, London, pp 293–303

    Google Scholar 

  • Horie T, Awazu S, Itakura Y, Fuwa T (1992) Identified diallyl polysulfides from an aged garlic extract which protects the membranes from lipid peroxidation. Planta Med 58:468–469

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hyma Jyothi S (2003) Export performance of onion and potato from India – an economic analysis. Indian J Agric Mark 17(3):131–141

    Google Scholar 

  • Jain D (2005) Modeling the performance of greenhouse with packed bed thermal storage on crop drying application. J Food Eng 71:170–178

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jones HA, Mann LK (1963) Onion and their allies. Leonard Hill Book Ltd, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Kalra CL, Beerh OP, Mann JK, Teoria MS, Sharma TC, Sidhu AS, Singh S (1986) Studies on the influence of cultivars on the quality of dehydrated onion. Indian Food Pack 40(40):20–27

    Google Scholar 

  • Kamel A, Saleh M (2000) Recent studies on the chemistry and biological activities of the organosulfur compounds of garlic (allium sativum). Stud Nat Prod Chem 23:455–485

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kamoi I, Kikuchi S, Matsumato S, Obara T (1981) Studies on dehydration of welsh onion and carrot by microwave. J Agric Sci (Tokyo), 20th Anniversary Edn, p 150–168

  • Kaymak-Ertekin F, Gedik A (2005) Kinetic modeling of quality deterioration in onions during drying and storage. J Food Eng 68:443–453

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kiranoudis CT, Maroulis ZB, Tsami E, Marinos-Kouris D (1992) Drying kinetics of onion and green pepper. Drying Technol 10(4):995–1011

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kiranoudis CT, Maroulis ZB, Tsami E, Marinos-Kouris D (1993) Equilibrium moisture content and heat of desorption of some vegetables. J Food Eng 20:55–74

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kourounakis PN, Rekka EA (1991) Effect on active oxygen species of alliin and Allium sativum (garlic) powder. Res Comm Chem Path Pharm 74:249–252

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Labuza TP, Saltmarch M (1981) The non-enzymatic browning reaction as affected by water in foods. In: Rockland LB, Stewart GF (eds) Water activity: influences on food quality. Academic, New York, p 605

    Google Scholar 

  • Lanzotti V (2006) The analysis of onion and garlic. J Chromat A 1112(1–2):3–22

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lewicki PP (1998) Effect of pre drying, drying and rehydration on plant tissue properties, a review. Int J Food Prop 1:1–22

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ly TN, Hazama C, Shimoyamada M, Ando H, Kato K, Yamauchi R (2005) Antioxidative compounds from the outer scales of onion. J Agric Food Chem 53:8183–8189

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Maini SB, Diwan B, Anand JC (1984) Storage behaviour and drying characteristics of commercial cultivars of onion. J Food Sci Technol 28:348–351

    Google Scholar 

  • Mazza G, Lemaguer M (1980a) Dehydration of onion: some theoretical and practical considerations. J Food Technol 15:181–194

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mazza G, LeMaguer M (1980b) Flavour retention during dehydration of onion. In: Linko P, Malkki Y, Olkku J, Larinkari J (eds) Food process engineering, Vol. 1. Applied Science Publisher Ltd, London, pp 399–406

    Google Scholar 

  • Miron T, Mironchik M, Mirelman D, Wilchek M, Rabinkov A (2003) Inhibition of tumor growth by a novel approach: in situ allicin generation using targeted alliinase delivery. Mol Cancer Ther 2:1295–1301

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mitra J, Shrivastava SL, Rao PS (2011) Vacuum dehydration kinetics of onion slices. Food Bioprod Process 89:1–9

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mizrahi S, Labuza TP, Karel M (1970) Computer aided predictions of extent of browning in dehydrated cabbage. J Food Sci 35:799–803

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mochizuki E, Nakazawa H (1995) Sulfur components of garlic and garlic preparations and their biological activities. Foods Food Ingredients J Jpn 164:36–45

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mongpraneet S, Abe T, Tsurusaki T (2002) Accelerated drying of welsh onion by far infrared radiation under vacuum conditions. J Food Eng 55:147–156

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moreno FJ, Corzo-Martı’nez M, Dolores del Castillo M, Villamiel M (2006) Changes in antioxidant activity of dehydrated onion and garlic during storage. Food Res Int 39(8):891–897

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mota CL, Luciano C, Dias A, Barroca MJ, Guine RPF (2010) Convective drying of onion: kinetics and nutritional evaluation. Food Bioprod Process 88:115–123

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Moyis AL (1986) Evaluation of a solar fruit dryer. Can Agric Eng 28(2):137–144

    Google Scholar 

  • Mulet A, Berna A, Rossello C (1989) Drying of carrots. I. Drying models. Drying Technol 7(3):537–557

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Munde AV, Agrawal YC, Shrikande VJ (1988) Process development for multistage dehydration of onion flakes. J Agric Eng ISAE 25(1):19–24

    Google Scholar 

  • NHRDF (2009) Area and production data. National Horticultural Research and Development Foundation. www.nhrdf.com. Access date 27 Nov 2009

  • Nuutila AM, Puupponen-Pimiä R, Aarni M, Oksman-Caldentey KM (2003) Comparison of antioxidant activity of onion and garlic extracts by inhibition of lipid peroxidation and radical scavenging activity. Food Chem 81:485–493

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pandey UB (1989) Raw material status and processing industry. Indian Food Packer 43(4):73–80

    Google Scholar 

  • Pathare PB, Sharma GP (2006) Effective moisture diffusivity of onion slices undergoing infrared convective drying. Biosysts Eng 93(3):258–291

    Google Scholar 

  • Perry JL (1985) Mathematical modeling and computer simulation of heat and mass transfer in agricultural grain drying: a review. J Agric Eng Res 32:1–29

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Popov OA, Efron BG, Milakova ES (1976) Trudy, Vse-soyuznyi Nauchno-issledovatel’ shii Institut Konservnoii Ovoshchesushill’noi Promyshlenn-osti 24: 43–50

  • Powar VN, Singh NI, Dev DK, Kulkarni DN, Ingle UM (1988) Solar drying of white onion flakes. Indian Food Packer 42(1):15–28

    Google Scholar 

  • Prasad K, Axdal VA, Yu M, Raney BL (1995) Antioxidant activity of allicin, an active principle in garlic. Mol Cell Biochem 148:183–189

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rapusas RS, Driscoll RH (1995a) Thin layer drying characteristics of white onion slices. Drying Technol 13:1905–1931

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rapusas RS, Driscoll RH (1995b) Kinetics of non-enzymatic browning in onion slices during isothermal heating. J Food Eng 24(3):417–429

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saguy I, Karel M (1980) Modelling of quality deterioration during food processing and storage. Food Technol 34(2):78–85

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Saimbhi MS, Padda DH, Singh G (1970) Evaluation of onion varieties for dehydration traits. J Food Sci Technol 8:149–150

    Google Scholar 

  • Samaniego-Esguerra CM, Boag IF, Robertson GL (1991) Kinetics of quality deterioration in dried onions and green beans as a function of temperature and water activity. Lebensm Wiss u Technol 24:53–58

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Saravacos GD, Charm SE (1962) A study of the mechanism of fruit and vegetable dehydration. Food Technol 16(1):78–81

    Google Scholar 

  • Sarsavadia PN, Sawhney RL, Pangavhane DR, Singh SP (1999) Drying behaviour of brined onion slices. J Food Eng 40:219–226

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sereno AM, Medeiros GL (1990) A simplified model for the prediction of drying rates for foods. J Food Eng 12:1–11

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sethi V, Anand JC, Netrapal J, Bhagchandani PM (1973) Quality screening of white onion cultivars for use in dehydration. Indian Food Packer 27(5):5–8

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sharma PK, Nath N (1991) Dehydration characteristics of ten onion cultivars. J Food Sci Technol 28(6):348–351

    Google Scholar 

  • Sharma GP, Verma RC, Pathare P (2005) Mathematical modeling of infrared radiation thin layer drying of onion slices. J Food Eng 71:282–286

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Singh S (2005) Onions for your health. www.Yobserver.com. Access date 10 November, 2009

  • Singh B, Kumar BLM (1984) Dehydration of onion varieties. Indian Food Packer 38(2):67–74

    Google Scholar 

  • Singh S, Singh J, Rai M (2006) Post harvest processing and value addition in vegetables: current perspectives. Indian Food Ind 25(4):54–58

    Google Scholar 

  • Somogyi LP, Luh BS (1986) Dehydration of fruits. In: Woodroof JG, Luh BS (eds) Commercial fruit processing, 2nd Edn. AVI Publishing Co., Inc, Westport, pp 353–405

    Google Scholar 

  • Srinivasa Murthy D, Subramanyam KV (1999) Onion export markets and their stability for increasing India’s exports: Markov chain approach. Agric Econ Res Rev 12(2):118–128

    Google Scholar 

  • Stavric B (1997) Chemopreventive agents in foods. In: Johns T, Romeo JT (eds) Functionality of food phytochemicals. Plenum, New York, pp 53–87

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Suh HJ, Lee JM, Cho JS, Kim YS, Chung SH (1999) Radical scavenging compounds in onion skin. Food Res Int 32:659–664

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sutar PP, Gupta DK (2007) Mathematical modeling of mass transfer in osmotic dehydration of onion slices. J Food Eng 78:90–97

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Swasdisevi T, Soponronnarit S, Prachayawarakorn S, Phetdasada W (1999) Drying of chopped spring onion using fluidization technique. Dry Tehnol 17(6):1191–1199

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thijssen HAC (1979) Optimization of process conditions during drying with regard to quality factors. Lebensm Wiss u Technol 12:308–317

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tong CH, Lund DB (1990) Effective moisture diffusivity in porous materials as a function of temperature and moisture content. Biotechnol Prog 6:67–75

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Troller JA (1989) Water activity and food quality. In: Hardman TM (ed) Water and food quality. Elsevier, London, p 1

    Google Scholar 

  • Vagenas GK, Marinos-kouris D (1991) The design and optimization of an industrial dryer for sultana raisins. Drying Technol 9(2):439–461

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van Kampen J (1970) The improvement of available onion varieties. Zaadbelangen 24:135–139

    Google Scholar 

  • Vidyavati HG, Manjunatha H, Hemavathy J, Srinivasan K (2010) Hypolipidemic and antioxidant efficacy of dehydrated onion in experimental rats. J Food Sci Technol 47(1):55–60

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Whitmore BB, Naidu AS (2000) Thiosulfinates. Natural food antimicrobial systems. Commercial publishers, USA, p 349

    Google Scholar 

  • Yamamoto JS, Stephenson RM (1968) Free-flowing onion, garlic or horseradish. US Patent 3378380

  • Yamasaki T, Li L, Lau BHS (1994) Garlic compounds protect vascular endothelial cells from hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidant injury. Phytother Res 8:408–412

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Agricultural and Food Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, 721302, India

    Jayeeta Mitra, S. L. Shrivastava & P. S. Rao

Authors
  1. Jayeeta Mitra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. S. L. Shrivastava
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. P. S. Rao
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jayeeta Mitra.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Mitra, J., Shrivastava, S.L. & Rao, P.S. Onion dehydration: a review. J Food Sci Technol 49, 267–277 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-011-0369-1

Download citation

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-011-0369-1

Keywords

Search

Navigation