Keywords:

Sensory analysis

Meat

Rabbit

Hylocereus undatus

Texture prole

Rabbit meat burgers with pitahaya peel powder: Functional, physicochemical and sensory

analysis

Hamburguesas de carne de conejo con polvo de cáscara de pitahaya: Análisis funcional, sicoquímico

y sensorial

Hambúrgueres de carne de coelho com pó de casca de pitaiaiás: Análise funcional, físico-química e

sensorial

Marcia Ruth Benavides-Gonzalez

Rocío Monserrate Zambrano-Zambrano

Jordan Javier García-Mendoza

1,2*

Lila Magaly Avellán-Avellán

1,3

José Patricio Muñoz-Murillo

1,2

Rev. Fac. Agron. (LUZ). 2025, 42(4): e254253

ISSN 2477-9407

DOI: https://doi.org/10.47280/RevFacAgron(LUZ).v42.n4.X

Food technology

Associate editor: Dra. Gretty R. Ettiene Rojas

University of Zulia, Faculty of Agronomy

Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

Departamento de Procesos Agroindustriales, Facultad de

Agrociencias, Universidad Técnica de Manabí, Chone,

Ecuador.

Grupo de Investigación “Industrialización de Productos y

Subproductos Agroindustriales”, Facultad de Agrociencias,

Universidad Técnica de Manabí, Chone, Ecuador.

Grupo de Investigación “Manejo y Agroindustrialización

de Productos Agropecuarios”, Facultad de Agrociencias,

Universidad Técnica de Manabí, Chone, Ecuador.

Received: 23-08-2025

Accepted: 25-10-2025

Published: 19-11-2025

Abstract

Nowadays, it is necessary to seek alternative agroindustrial

uses of fruit residues, as these are sources of bioactive compounds

important for human nutrition. The objective of this study was

to evaluate the eect of pitahaya peel powder on the functional,

physicochemical, and sensory acceptability properties of rabbit meat

burgers. Five formulations of rabbit burger meat with pitahaya peel

powder (3, 5, 7, and 9 %) and a control formulation were established

under a completely randomized experimental design with a factorial

arrangement. In the processed products, functional properties

(anthocyanin content, antioxidant activity (DPPH and ABTS) and

total phenols), physicochemical properties (pigmentation of the

ether extract, protein, fat, ber, ash, moisture and total solids),

textural and colorimetric characteristics (hardness, cohesiveness,

adhesiveness, gumminess and color), microbiological properties

(mesophilic aerobes, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and

Salmonella) and sensory attributes (avor, aroma, color and texture)

were determined. The treatment with the best physicochemical and

functional properties was T4 (9 % ppp) whose values were: fat (2.48

%); ber (3.86 %); a* (23.06); b* (3.47), anthocyanins (+++), DPPH

(23.667 µmol trolox equivalent.g

-1

), ABTS (30.353 µmol trolox

equivalent.g

-1

), total phenols (19.706 mg gallic acid equivalent.g

-1

);

pigmentation (0.113), hardness (4.552 N), adhesiveness (-0.855 N)

and gumminess (2.128 N). All treatments met the physicochemical

and microbiological requirements established in the Ecuadorian

standard NTE INEN 1338.

This scientic publication in digital format is a continuation of the Printed Review: Legal Deposit pp 196802ZU42, ISSN 0378-7818.

Rev. Fac. Agron. (LUZ). 2025, 42(4): e254253 October-December. ISSN 2477-9409.

2-6 |

Resumen

En la actualidad es necesario buscar alternativas de

aprovechamiento agroindustrial de los residuos frutícolas, debido a

que estos son fuentes de compuestos bioactivos de importancia en la

alimentación humana. El objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar el efecto

del polvo de cáscara de pitahaya sobre las propiedades funcionales,

sicoquímicas y aceptabilidad sensorial de hamburguesas de

carne de conejo. Se establecieron cinco formulaciones de carne de

hamburguesas de conejo con polvo de cáscara de pitahaya (3, 5, 7

y 9 %) y una formulación control, bajo un diseño experimental

completamente al azar con arreglo factorial. En los productos

elaborados, se determinaron propiedades funcionales (contenido

de antocianinas, actividad antioxidante (DPPH y ABTS) y fenoles

totales), sicoquímicas (pigmentación del extracto etéreo, proteína,

grasa, bra, cenizas, humedad y sólidos totales), características de

textura y colorimetría (dureza, cohesividad, adhesividad, gomosidad

y color), microbiológicas (aerobios mesólos, Escherichia coli,

Staphylococcus aureus y Salmonella) y los atributos sensoriales

(sabor, aroma, color y textura). El tratamiento con mejores propiedades

sicoquímicas y funcionales fue el T4 (9 % ppp) cuyos valores fueron:

grasa (2,48 %); bra (3,86 %); a* (23,06); b* (3,47), antocianinas

(+++), DPPH (23,667 µmol trolox equivalente.g

-1

), ABTS (30,353

µmol trolox equivalente.g

-1

), fenoles totales (19,706 mg ácido gálico

equivalente.g

-1

); pigmentación (0,113), dureza (4,552 N), adhesividad

(-0,855 N) y gomosidad (2,128 N). Todos los tratamientos cumplieron

con los requisitos sicoquímicos y microbiológicos establecidos en la

norma ecuatoriana NTE INEN 1338.

Palabras clave: análisis sensorial, carne, conejo, Hylocereus undatus,

perl de textura.

Resumo

Atualmente, faz-se necessário buscar usos agroindustriais

alternativos dos resíduos de frutas, visto que estes são fontes de

compostos bioativos importantes para a nutrição humana. O objetivo

deste estudo foi avaliar o efeito do pó da casca de pitaiaiás nas

propriedades de aceitabilidade funcional, físico-química e sensorial

de hambúrgueres de carne de coelho. Cinco formulações de carne

de hambúrguer de coelho com pó da casca de pitaiaiás (3, 5, 7 e 9

%) e uma formulação controle foram estabelecidas em delineamento

experimental inteiramente casualizado com arranjo fatorial.

Nos produtos processados, foram determinadas as propriedades

funcionais (teor de antocianinas, atividade antioxidante (DPPH e

ABTS) e fenóis totais), propriedades físico-químicas (pigmentação

do extrato etéreo, proteína, gordura, bra, cinzas, umidade e sólidos

totais), características texturais e colorimétricas (dureza, coesividade,

adesividade, gomosidade e cor), propriedades microbiológicas

(aeróbios mesólos, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus e

Salmonella) e atributos sensoriais (sabor, aroma, cor e textura). O

tratamento com melhores propriedades físico-químicas e funcionais

foi o T4 (9 % ppp) cujos valores foram: gordura (2,48 %); bra (3,86

%); a* (23,06); b* (3,47), antocianinas (+++), DPPH (23,667 µmol

equivalente trolox.g

-1

), ABTS (30,353 µmol equivalente trolox.g

-1

fenóis totais (19,706 mg equivalente ácido gálico.g

-1

); pigmentação

(0,113), dureza (4,552 N), adesividade (-0,855 N) e gomosidade

(2,128 N). Todos os tratamentos atenderam aos requisitos físico-

químicos e microbiológicos estabelecidos na norma equatoriana NTE

INEN 1338.

Palavras-chave: Análise sensorial, carne, coelho, Hylocereus

undatus, perl de textura.

Introduction

Rabbit meat (Oryctolagus cuniculus) stands out for its unique

nutritional compounds, being a lean meat, low in fat, rich in minerals,

vitamins (especially B vitamins: B1, B2, B12) and proteins (Aquino-

López et al., 2020). It diers from other meats in organoleptic aspects

such as avour, aroma and tenderness (Herrera-Stanziola et al.,

2023). Rabbit meat is recommended for people with high protein

requirements or a sensitive digestive system. In addition, it is highly

versatile in the food industry for the production of various meat

products (González Balmaceda et al., 2023).

Rabbit meat in products such as ham and sausages has been shown

to generate a yield comparable to that of other species. Rabbit meat

formulations with honey as an antioxidant have also been developed

(López-Velasco et al., 2021), as well as sausages with chontaduro

powder (Bactris gasipaes) and reformed corn starch extenders

(Hleap-Zapata et al., 2014), achieving improvements in preservation

and increased nutritional properties.

In Ecuador, 90 % of Manabí pitahaya is exported (Flores and

García, 2016). Furthermore, only the edible part of the fruit, which

represents about 55 % of its total weight, is used. This is used to

make foods such as frozen pulp, concentrates, juices and jams,

while the remaining 45 % is discarded in landlls, causing potential

environmental pollution problems. Currently, it is used as fodder and

in the extraction of natural pigments; however, alternatives for its

use in the meat industry should be sought due to its high antioxidant

content (Cervantes-Sánchez et al., 2017).

Pitahaya peel is a good source of bioactive compounds, such as

phenolics, and also contains soluble and insoluble bre, betalains

and other volatile compounds (Lin et al., 2021). Currently, a variety

of polyphenolic compounds have been described in the peel of

red pitahaya fruits, including acids such as gallic, protocatechuic,

vanillic, caeic, syringic, p-coumaric acid, isorhamnetin triglycoside,

and quercetin-3-O-rutinoside, among others (Tang et al., 2021).

In this context, by-products from fruit processing industries are a

rich source of antioxidant compounds with protective or preventive

properties against human diseases (Echegaray et al., 2018). On the

other hand, consumers of easy-to-prepare meat products demand

hamburger meat with sensory, functional, nutritional, and healthy

qualities for their consumption (Cantarero-Aparicio et al., 2022). In

light of the above, this study evaluated the eect of pitahaya peel

powder on the functional and physicochemical properties and sensory

acceptability of rabbit meat burgers.

Materials and methods

Location of the trial

The experimental work was carried out at the Laboratorio de

Procesos Agroindustriales, Facultad de Agrociencias, Universidad

Técnica de Manabí, Chone, Ecuador.

Raw materials

Pitahaya fruit peel (Hylocereus undatus) was used, supplied by

Hacienda El Okaso, located in the Rocafuerte district. The carcass of

a New Zealand White rabbit was purchased in the rabbit production

area located in the city of Santo Domingo de los T’sáchilas. The other

ingredients (eggs, salt, cumin, pepper, garlic powder, breadcrumbs,

sunower oil) needed to make the hamburger patties were purchased

at the GRAN AKÍ supermarket in the canton of Chone, province of

Manabí, Ecuador.

This scientic publication in digital format is a continuation of the Printed Review: Legal Deposit pp 196802ZU42, ISSN 0378-7818.

Benavides-Gonzalez et al Rev. Fac. Agron. (LUZ). 2025, 42(4): e254252

3-6 |

Konica Minolta CR-410FF colourimeter with printer (CIELab scale).

The parameters considered were: lightness (L*), saturation (a*) and

hue (b*).

Microbiological analysis

The following microbiological parameters were evaluated:

mesophilic aerobes CFU.g

-1

(NTE INEN 1529-5), Escherichia coli

CFU.g

-1

(AOAC 991.14), Staphylococcus aureus CFU.g

-1

(NTE

INEN 1529-14) and Salmonella 1/25 g (NTE INEN 1529-15).

Sensory analysis

The rabbit meat hamburger treatments made with pitahaya peel

powder were evaluated organoleptically through sensory analysis.

Seventy untrained tasters participated in the analysis. The samples

were cooked in sunower oil at a temperature of 170 °C for 6 minutes

(3 minutes per side), then left to cool for 30 minutes at 28 °C. The

rabbit burger patties were then chopped up and given to the tasters in

random order, along with a hedonic test of sensory acceptability on

a 7-point scale (1 = I dislike it very much – 7 = I like it very much).

The tasters immediately determined the degree of acceptance of the

following sensory attributes: avour, aroma, colour and texture of the

processed product.

Experimental design and statistical analysis

A completely randomised experimental design with a factorial

arrangement was used, with ve treatments including a control and

three replicates per treatment, giving a total of 15 experimental

units. The factor under study was the concentrations of pitahaya peel

powder (3, 5, 7 and 9 %).

Minitab 18 statistical processing software was used. Analysis of

variance and Dunnett’s test at 5 % signicance and 95 % condence

were used for the functional and physicochemical prole data.

Non-parametric analysis of variance and Kruskal Wallis test at 5 %

signicance and 95 % condence were used for the sensory data. The

results were presented as mean ± standard deviation.

Results and discussion

Functional and physicochemical prole analysis

The results of the analysis of variance and comparison of means

according to Dunnett are detailed in table 2. The anthocyanin results

were interpreted according to the following assessment: - (nil); +

(moderate); ++ (notable) and +++ (total change).

Preparation of rabbit meat burgers

Before preparing the burgers, pitahaya (Hylocereus undatus) shell

powder was obtained using the methodology proposed by Muñoz-

Murillo et al. (2024).

The rabbit carcass was selected based on organoleptic parameters

compatible with a quality product: bright pink colour, rm texture

and characteristic smell, with no signs of decomposition. Standard

cuts were then made, measuring approximately 7 cm wide by 9 cm

long. The pieces were washed with drinking water to remove surface

blood residues. Finally, the cuts were vacuum-packed in food-grade

polyethylene bags and frozen at a temperature of -2 °C for 24 hours in

order to preserve their physicochemical and microbiological stability

prior to processing.

The rabbit meat was minced using an industrial mincer with 7 mm

discs, then the meat was weighed and the respective repetitions were

carried out, according to the hamburger formulation (table 1). Next,

homogenisation was carried out, a process that consisted of mixing

the ground meat with the other raw materials (egg, salt, cumin,

pepper, garlic powder, breadcrumbs, sunower oil, and pitahaya peel

powder) until a homogeneous mixture was obtained.

The meat mixture was moulded using plastic hamburger patties,

then packaged, sealing the meat patties in polyethylene bags. The

prepared hamburgers were stored frozen (-2 °C) for 24 hours until

laboratory analysis.

Table 1. Formulation of the treatments under study for rabbit

meat burgers.

Raw materials

(g)

0 % ppp

3 % ppp

5 % ppp

7 % ppp

9 %

ppp

Egg 50.00 50.00 50.00 50.00 50.00

Salt 15.00 15.00 15.00 15.00 15.00

Cumin 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00

Pepper 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00

Garlic powder 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00

Breadcrumbs 20.00 20.00 20.00 20.00 20.00

Sunower oil 8.00 8.00 8.00 8.00 8.00

Rabbit meat 300.00 300.00 300.00 300.00 300.00

Pitahaya peel

powder

----- 9.00 15.00 21.00 27.00

Total 400.00 409.00 415.00 421.00 427.00

ppp: pitahaya peel powder.

Functional and physicochemical analysis

In the dierent treatments of processed rabbit meat burgers,

their anthocyanin content (acid/base qualitative test method), DPPH

antioxidant activity (Haddouchi et al., 2014) and ABTS (Re et al.,

1999) by spectrophotometric assay, total phenols (Sultana et al.,

2009) by Folin-Ciocalteu spectrophotometric assay, ether extract

pigmentation (spectrophotometric scanning assay), protein (NTE

INEN-ISSO 937), fat (NTE INEN-ISSO 1443), bre (AOAC 962.09),

ash (NTE INEN 520), moisture (NTE INEN-ISSO 1442), total solids

(NTE INEN-ISO 1442).

Determination of texture and colorimetric characteristics

In the dierent treatments under study, an instrumental analysis

of texture prole was performed using a Texture Tester (Shimadzu

Universal Tester EZTest EZ-LX). The parameters evaluated in the

APT were: hardness (N), cohesiveness (dimensionless), adhesiveness

(N) and gumminess (N). Colour analysis was evaluated using a

The presence of anthocyanins in rabbit meat burgers was zero (-)

in the control treatment; however, in T1 and T2 their presence was

moderate (+), notable in T3 and a total change in T4. Similar results

were presented by Muñoz-Murillo et al. (2025), who determined a

notable presence of anthocyanins in chicken nuggets with 10 % red

pitahaya peel powder, demonstrating that this agro-industrial residue

is rich in functional compounds such as anthocyanins. On the other

hand, Rocchetti et al. (2022) determined that adding encapsulated

elderberry extract to beef burgers caused several metabolomic

changes, probably due to the abundance of dierent compounds such

as anthocyanins. The antioxidant activity results (DPPH and ABTS)

obtained were higher in T4 (23.667 ± 0.18 µmol trolox equivalent.g

-1

30.353 ± 0.04 µmol trolox equivalent.g

-1

), exceeding those published

by Mancini et al. (2020), who obtained values for ABTS between

1.38 and 1.03 mmol trolox eq.kg

-1

, while for DPPH their averages

ranged from 0.07 to 0.960 trolox eq.kg

-1

in rabbit hamburger meat

cooked with garlic powder.

In terms of total phenol content, T4 showed the best results.

Plastina Cardoso et al. (2023) reported 0.26 ± 0.05 mg EAG.kg

-1

This scientic publication in digital format is a continuation of the Printed Review: Legal Deposit pp 196802ZU42, ISSN 0378-7818.

Rev. Fac. Agron. (LUZ). 2025, 42(4): e254253 October-December. ISSN 2477-9409.

4-6 |

Table 2. Functional and physicochemical prole of rabbit meat burgers made with pitahaya peel powder.

Parameters

0 % ppp

± SD

3 % ppp

± SD

5 % ppp

± SD

7 % ppp

± SD

9 % ppp

± SD

Sig.

Dunnett

Anthocyanins - + + ++ +++ ---

DPPH (µmol Trolox) 8.496 ± 0.26

12.772 ± 0.08 14.187 ± 0.06 18.688 ± 0.14 23.667 ± 0.18 0.000

ABTS (µmol Trolox) 15.196 ± 0.02

17.061 ± 0.02 21.082 ± 0.01 28.341 ± 0.08 30.353 ± 0.04 0.000

Phenols (mg gallic acid) 14.425 ± 0.09

16.502 ± 0.12 16.693 ± 0.07 19.982 ± 0.04 19.706 ± 0.05 0.000

Pigmentation 0.032 ± 0.00

0.055 ± 0.00 0.076 ± 0.00 0.097 ± 0.00 0.113 ± 0.00 0.000

Protein (%) 20.59 ± 0.06

19.56 ± 0.19 19.11 ± 0.07 18.70 ± 0.07 17.88 ± 0.50 0.000

Fat (%) 2.13 ± 0.13

2.33 ± 0.25

2.30 ± 0.06

2.44 ± 0.21

2.48 ± 0.20

0.247

Fibre (%) 1.08 ± 0.02

1.61 ± 0.16 2.05 ± 0.06 2.31 ± 0.04 3.86 ± 0.07 0.000

Ash (%) 1.99 ± 0.00

2.27 ± 0.01 2.43 ± 0.03 2.65 ± 0.05 3.19 ± 0.04 0.000

Moisture (%) 73.27 ± 0.33

72.68 ± 0.25 71.40 ± 0.01 70.36 ± 0.11 67.75 ± 0.13 0.000

Total solids (%) 26.72 ± 0.33

27.31 ± 0.25 28.58 ± 0.01 29.63 ± 0.11 32.23 ± 0.13 0.000

ppp: pitahaya shell powder. Means not labelled with the letter A are signicantly dierent from the mean of the control level.

of phenolic compounds in hamburger meat with Goji berry extract.

With regard to the pigmentation of the ethereal extract in the control

treatment, a lower presence (0.032 ± 0.00) was observed due to the

pigment oxymyoglobin, which particularly generates an attractive

red colour characteristic of meat (Valenzuela and Pérez, 2016).

Pigmentation was higher in T4 due to the anthocyanins present in

the pitahaya peel powder. Plant pigments and natural compounds

improve colour and reduce lipid oxidation in meat-based foods.

The protein content in the processed rabbit meat burgers was lower

in the treatments with ppp. This is because the protein content is low,

as stated by Siriwan et al. (2022), who in their research determined a

6.15 % protein content in pitahaya (Hylocereus undatus) peel powder.

Therefore, as the concentration of PPP in the formula increases,

protein levels decrease considerably. However, the experimental

products were within the permissible protein limit (minimum 10 %)

established in the Ecuadorian standard NTE INEN 1338 (2012).

The fat values were similar among the rabbit meat burger

formulations, falling within 2%, which makes the meat product

an important lean food in the human diet. Mancini et al. (2017)

demonstrated that adding ginger powder increased the PUFAω3

fatty acid compounds in rabbit meat burgers in both raw and cooked

samples, unlike in this study, where the values remained the same

within the same range when using pitahaya peel powder.

The signicant bre content in the meat product was due to its

presence in the pitahaya peel, which, according to Siriwan et al.

(2022), contains around 65.2 % bre, meaning that its consumption

could promote the proper functioning of the digestive system in the

human body.

With regard to ash content, pitahaya peel powder had a signicant

inuence on rabbit meat burgers, i.e. the higher the amount of

pitahaya peel powder in the formula, the greater the slight increase

in the ash levels of the meat product, which may benet consumers

by providing them with a food product that is a potential source of

minerals.

The moisture content was higher in T0, while lower results were

found in T4. The moisture content in meat products is important

because this physicochemical quality parameter is the ideal medium

for the proliferation and activation of pathogenic microorganisms.

Studies such as that by Castro et al. (2020) reported a moisture content

of 78.6 % in hamburger meat. The total solids results obtained in this

study refer to those presented by García et al. (2012) with maximum

averages of 38.82 ± 2.01 % total solids in hamburger meat with

legume our.

Texture prole and colorimetry

Table 3 details the results of the analysis of variance and Dunnett’s

comparison of means test for the texture prole and colorimetry

variables.

Table 3. Texture and colorimetry prole (CIELab) in rabbit meat burgers made with pitahaya peel powder.

Parameters

0 % ppp

± SD

3 % ppp

± SD

5 % ppp

± SD

7 % ppp

± SD

9 % ppp

± SD

Sig.

Dunnett

Hardness (N) 1.805 ± 0.03

1.844 ± 0.23

2.549 ± 0.43 2.501 ± 0.33

4.552 ± 0.28 0.000

Cohesiveness 0.0511 ± 0.00

0.199 ± 0.34

0.547 ± 0.02

0.543 ± 0.07

0.465 ± 0.05

0.112

Adhesiveness (N) -0.223 ± 0.05

-0.429 ± 0.04 -0.504 ± 0.05 -0.616 ± 0.08 -0.855 ± 0.14 0.000

Gumminess (N) 0.924 ± 0.01

0.416 ± 0.72

1.407 ± 0.30

1.375 ± 0.36

2.128 ± 0.39 0.007

CIELab

L* 53.43 ± 0.61

48.92 ± 0.10 46.73 ± 3.68 39.39 ± 0.47 35.22 ± 1.19 0.000

a* 2.43 ± 0.01

14.23 ± 0.51 19.04 ± 0.20 20.76 ± 0.93 23.06 ± 0.48 0.000

b* 12.85 ± 0.03

7.15 ± 0.98 4.98 ± 1.14 3.23 ± 0.83 3.47 ± 1.92 0.000

ppp: pitahaya shell powder. Means not labelled with the letter A are signicantly dierent from the mean of the control level.

This scientic publication in digital format is a continuation of the Printed Review: Legal Deposit pp 196802ZU42, ISSN 0378-7818.

Benavides-Gonzalez et al Rev. Fac. Agron. (LUZ). 2025, 42(4): e254252

5-6 |

The hardness of the rabbit meat hamburger was lower for the

control treatment T0: 1.805 ± 0.03 N, while the treatment with the

highest hardness was T4: 4.552 ± 0.28 N. These results demonstrated

that the higher the concentration of pitahaya peel powder in the

product, the higher the hardness values. Lima da Silva et al. (2023)

reported a hardness of 23.1 ± 10.3 N in hamburger meat with

sweet passion fruit peel. On the other hand, Parafati et al. (2019)

demonstrated that by directly adding or encapsulating prickly pear

fruit extract in the formulation of beef hamburger meat, the hardness

of the meat product would increase signicantly from 10.55 ± 1.46

to 15.76 ± 5.66 N. The addition of by-products to meat products can

improve their texture.

The adhesiveness of rabbit meat burgers was higher in treatments

with pitahaya peel powder. In contrast, Muñoz-Murillo et al. (2025)

reported lower adhesiveness of -0.01 ± 1.10 N in chicken nuggets

with 4, 7 and 10 % pitahaya peel powder, indicating that pitahaya

by-products can increase or decrease adhesiveness depending on the

meat product.

The gumminess was higher in treatments with percentages greater

than 5 % pitahaya peel powder. These results are similar to those

obtained by Muñoz-Murillo et al. (2025), who obtained 3.90 ± 0.29

N in chicken nuggets with 4 % pitahaya peel powder. Gumminess can

be inuenced by the bre content present in pitahaya peel powder,

as stated by Rocha Saraiva et al. (2019), who demonstrated in their

study that when fat was partially replaced by brewer’s waste (malt

bagasse – high in bre) in hamburger meat, the gumminess of the

meat product increased considerably.

According to the CIELab scale, the treatment with the best

brightness (L*) characteristic was T0 (0 % ppp), while T4 had the

best saturation (a*) and tone (b*) close to reddish-yellow due to the 9

% ppp concentration. García-Vásquez et al. (2020) determined values

of L* (48.54 ± 0.83), a* (1.70 ± 0.25) and b* (8.30 ± 0.57) for rabbit

burgers infused with Chenopodium.

Microbiological analysis

The microbiological quality results for all treatments under study

are within the requirements of standard NTE INEN 1338 (2012) for

meat products (table 4).

Table 4. Microbiological analysis of rabbit meat burgers made

with pitahaya peel powder.

Microorganisms

0 % ppp

3 % ppp

5 % ppp

7 % ppp

9 % ppp

Mesophilic

aerobes

1.0x10

Escherichia coli 1.0x10

1.0x10

Staphylococcus

aureus

1.0x10

Salmonella Ausencia Ausencia Ausencia Ausencia Ausencia

ppp: pitahaya shell powder. CFU: Colony-forming units.

Sensory analysis

The treatments under study did not show statistical signicance

among themselves for the variables of taste, aroma, colour and texture

(table 5), i.e. statistically all treatments are considered similar in the

organoleptic attributes evaluated by untrained tasters. The sensory

analysis results established an organoleptic acceptance rating of 5.00

points for all treatments in terms of avour, aroma, colour and texture

in rabbit meat burgers made with pitahaya peel powder, indicating a

low level of acceptability for the meat product. In contrast, studies

such as that by Mohamed Mokhtar and Sallah Eldeep (2020) identied

that adding 0.01 % mango peel our to beef burgers resulted in the

most acceptable sensory acceptance of the meat product by tasters.

Table 5. Sensory acceptability of rabbit meat burgers.

Sensory

attributes

0 % ppp

± DE

3 % ppp

± DE

5 % ppp

± DE

7 % ppp

± DE

9 %ppp

± DE

Sig.

Flavour 5.13 ± 1.84 5.30 ± 1.73 5.17 ± 2.06 5.13 ± 1.79 5.27 ± 1.87 0.8928

Aroma 5.17 ± 1.41 5.13 ± 1.58 5.06 ± 1.72 5.11 ± 1.51 5.30 ± 1.50 0.9491

Colour 5.23 ± 1.56 5.34 ± 1.34 5.39 ± 1.43 4.81 ± 1.58 5.14 ± 1.51 0.1609

Texture 5.23 ± 1.64 5.29 ± 1.51 5.61 ± 1.42 5.19 ± 1.69 5.20 ± 1.77 0.4200

ppp: pitahaya shell powder. ns: not signicant

Conclusions

A signicant increase in functional and nutritional compounds

was demonstrated in rabbit meat burgers enriched with pitahaya peel

powder, generating a viable alternative for the use of agro-industrial

waste and the nutritional improvement of meat products.

Treatment T4 showed the best results in terms of colorimetry (a*

and b*) and texture prole in the variables of hardness, adhesiveness,

and chewiness. The treatments were microbiologically acceptable,

complying with Ecuadorian technical standard NTE INEN 1338.

Untrained tasters expressed a low degree of acceptance in terms

of sensory response attributes. Therefore, it is important to conduct

further studies to improve the sensory perception of tasters in the

processed product.

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