Exploring the biofunctionalities of lactic fermented cactus pear ( Opuntia elatior Mill.) fruit beverage: an exotic superfood.

Cactus pear fruit is known with many health benefits in ethnomedicine of countries like Mexico, Portugal, Chine, India etc. The study was aimed to develop biofunctional lactic fermented cactus pear fruit beverage to add values to the medicinal fruit. The processing parameters such as quantity of freeze dried cactus pear fruit powder, sucrose and incubation time were optimised using response surface methodology. The optimized product was then subjected to proximate compositional, physicochemical, biofunctional and microbial analysis. The lactic fermented cactus pear fruit beverage was prepared by mixing 12% [w/v] freeze dried cactus pear fruit powder and 3% sucrose in water, then pasteurised and inoculated with 3% Lactobacillus fermentum MTCC 25515 and Lactobacillus rhamnosus M9, then incubated at 37 °C for 6 h. The moisture content of the beverage was 87.77% and major constituent was carbohydrate (9.58% per wet matter basis). The 100 mL beverage contains 89.84 mg GAE phenolic compounds, 5.86 mg QE flavonoids, 71.82 mg betacyanin, 28.08 mg betaxanthin, 10.59 mg ascorbic acid. The beverage also exhibited 58% ABTS antioxidant activity. The beverage was shelf stable for 20 days at 7 ± 1 °C. Such a biofunctional beverage loaded with antioxidant potential can be consumed as refreshing drink.