Question

Given below are two statements, one is labelled as Assertion (A) and other one labelled as Reason (R).
Assertion (A) : Most vegetables except onion and garlic are blanched before drying
Reason (R) : Blanching stops the action of enzymes, which are not killed by sun drying

• A. Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).
• B. Both (A) and (R) are true but (R) is NOT the correct explanation of (A).
• C. (A) is true but (R) is false.
• D. (A) is false but (R) is true.

Hint:

Blanching is primarily an enzyme-inactivating process. Because dry-heat sun drying cannot reach the high temperatures required to denature plant enzymes, a hot water or steam pre-treatment is essential for color and flavor stability.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
Blanching is a mild thermal pre-treatment applied to vegetables prior to preservation (drying, freezing, or canning).
The primary objective of blanching is to protect the quality parameters of the food during storage.

Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Let us analyze the Assertion and the Reason:
- Assertion (A) is true: Most vegetables are blanched in hot water or steam before dehydration.
Onion and garlic are notable exceptions because thermal treatments like blanching destroy the volatile organosulfur compounds responsible for their characteristic flavor and pungency.
- Reason (R) is true: Natural enzymes (such as polyphenol oxidase, peroxidase, and catalase) cause undesirable changes in color, flavor, and nutritional value.
Sun drying and low-temperature dehydration processes only remove moisture but are insufficient to denature or fully inactivate these robust enzymes.
If not blanched, these active enzymes continue to degrade quality even in the dried state.
- Explanation relationship: The Reason directly explains why blanching is systematically performed: to halt enzymatic activity that sun drying cannot prevent.
Therefore, Both (A) and (R) are true, and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).

Step 3: Final Answer:
Both (A) and (R) are true, and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).