Kualitas Bulir Cairan Caulerpa racemosa yang Disalut dengan Na-Alginat dan Ca-Laktat

Caulerpa racemosa mengandung serat, vitamin, antioksidan, polisakarida sulfat, sulfat bebas, dan mineral sehingga dapat dimanfaatkan sebagai pangan fungsional. Namun, cairan C. racemosa mudah mengalami kemunduran mutu selama proses penyimpanan dan transportasi, sehingga perlu dipertahankan mutunya dalam bentuk bulir. Perlakuan yang diberikan dalam proses penyalutan adalah variasi konsentrasi Na-alginat 0,4%; 0,6% dan 0,8% dan variasi larutan Ca-laktat 0,4%; 0,6% dan 0,8% yang diulang sebanyak tiga kali. Tujuan penelitian ini untuk menentukan kombinasi konsentrasi Na-alginat dan Ca-laktat terbaik dalam mempertahankan mutu bulir cairan C. racemosa. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa cairan C. racemosa mengandung mineral, serat pangan, dan asam amino baik esensial maupun non esensial dengan kadar air cairan C. racemosa sebesar 97,77%±0,02% dan setelah ditambah air dengan rasio 1:4, kadar airnya menjadi 99,6%±0,61%. Perlakuan konsentrasi Ca-laktat berpengaruh terhadap kadar air dan kadar abu bulir yang dihasilkan, sementara kadar serat kasar bulir dipengaruhi oleh perbedaan konsentrasi Na-alginat. Nilai terbaik berdasarkan kadar serat ditemukan pada perlakuan kombinasi Na-alginat 0,6% dan Ca-laktat 0,8% sebesar 4,05% dengan kadar air 97,22% dan kadar abu 0,65%.ABSTRACTCaulerpa racemosa contains fiber, vitamins, antioxidants, sulfated polysaccharides, free sulfates, and minerals so that it can be used as functional food. However, C. racemosa liquid deteriorates easily during storage and transportation, therefore it is necessary to maintain the quality of C. racemosa liquid in encapsulated form as grain. The treatments given in encapsulation process were variation of Na-alginat concentration i.e. 0.4%; 0.6% and 0.8%, and variation of Ca-lactate solution i.e. 0.4%; 0.6% and 0.8% which were repeated three times. The aim of the study was to determine the best combination of Na-alginate and Ca-lactate concentrations in maintaining the quality of encapsulated C. racemosa liquid grain. The results showed that C. racemosa liquid contained minerals, dietary fiber and amino acids, both essential and non-essential, with moisture content of 97.77±0.02%. After added with water with a ratio of 1:4, the moisture content of C. racemosa liquid was 99.6%±0.61%. The treatment of Ca-lactate concentration affected the moisture content and ash content of the liquid grain, while the crude fiber content was affected by Na-alginate concentration. The best value based on fiber content was found in the combination treatment of 0.6% Na-alginate and 0.8% Ca-lactate (A6K8) at 4.05%, with moisture content of 97.22% and an ash content of 0.65%.