Physico-chemical change and heat stability of extra virgin olive oils flavoured by selected Tunisian aromatic plants

Objectives of this work were studying physico-chemical change and heat stability of olive oils flavoured by selected Tunisian aromatic plants. Flavoured olive oils were prepared by maceration of fresh plant materials (rosemary, lavender, sage, menthe, basil, lemon and thyme) with olive oil at a 5% w/w level for 15 days. A sensorial evaluation was applied to select more appreciate flavoured olive oils by consumers. An oxidative procedure was applied to test the stability of selected flavoured olive oils: oils samples were kept in glass bottles and heated at 60 and 130 degrees C during 55 days and 6 h, respectively. The resistance to oxidation of these selected flavoured oils was compared to a control samples by measuring PV, K232 and K270 values and change in chlorophyll, carotenes and polyphenols contents. Obtained results show that addition of aromatic plants causes a slight increase in free acidity and viscosity of aromatised olive oils. L*, b* and a* values show that addition of thyme cause a great change in olive oil colours. Heat stability results shows that from selected aromatic plants, rosemary was effectiveness against oxidation followed by thyme and lemon. However, olive oil flavoured with basil exhibit a similar behaviour versus thermal oxidation then the natural olive oil. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.