Development and Quality Evaluation of Prototype Products from Organic Pigmented Rice for Commercial Applications

Abstract

This study aimed to develop and evaluate the quality of prototype products from organic pigmented rice for commercial applications, including instant organic pigmented rice porridge, an organic pigmented rice powdered beverage, and a hair serum containing organic pigmented rice extract. Four organic pigmented rice varieties, namely Hom Wessantara, Jao Hom Dam Sutabut, Tubtim Chumphae, and Sangyod, were investigated. For the instant porridge formulations, all supplementary ingredients were maintained at the same proportions, while the rice variety was varied. The developed products were evaluated for their physical, chemical, biological, and sensory acceptance properties. The results showed that the optimum rice-to-water ratio for instant porridge production was 1:11, and suitable drum-drying conditions were 130–140°C at a drum speed of 1 rpm. The instant porridge products exhibited L* values ranging from 48.27 to 53.46, viscosities of 412.58–542.54 cP, pH values of 7.26–7.65, moisture contents of 3.12–3.41%, and water activity (aw) values of 0.36–0.38. Regarding biological properties, the porridge prepared from Jao Hom Dam Sutabut rice exhibited the highest DPPH radical-scavenging activity (104.32 ± 0.70), whereas the Hom Wessantara rice porridge showed the highest total anthocyanin content (37.51 ± 0.45 mg CGE/100g) and total phenolic content (120.32 ± 1.10 mg GAE/g dw). Sensory evaluation using a 9-point hedonic scale with 50 consumers showed overall liking scores ranging from 5.40 to 6.36. Jao Hom Dam Sutabut rice porridge received the highest overall liking score of 6.36, followed by Tubtim Chumphae (6.05), Sangyod (6.00), and Hom Wessantara (5.40). For the powdered beverage, the formulation with a rice-to-extract ratio of 85:15 yielded the highest anthocyanin content (14.50 mg/L) and DPPH radical-scavenging activity (85.09%). The addition of 5% maltodextrin resulted in the highest retention of anthocyanins and antioxidant activity after spray drying. The hair serum had a pH of approximately 5.00, exhibited good physical stability without phase separation, met microbiological criteria, and achieved 96% consumer acceptance. These findings demonstrate the feasibility of utilizing organic pigmented rice to develop diverse prototype products and provide fundamental data for further product optimization and commercial application readiness.