Natural crystallisation of tucuma (Astrocaryum vulgare Mart.) pulp olein

Tucuma (Astrocaryum vulgare Mart.) is a native Amazonian fruit rich in lipids, the exploitation of which is performed sustainably by small local producers. This paper investigates the potential of natural crystallisation of tucuma olein to produce fractions that could potentially replace palm oil in food products. The olein crystallisation was performed over 2 and 7 days. The physical, chemical, and rheological characteristics of the tucuma olein and its fractions were evaluated. There was no significant difference in the mass percentage of phase formation between the 2nd and 7th day of cooling. The super olein (upper phase) fraction had a higher total carotenoid content per g of oil than both the olein and the mid-fraction (heavier phase). All fractions presented oleic acid as the major component and triacylglycerols with 52 and 54 carbon atoms, with a predominance of two unsaturated acyl chains and fully unsaturated triacylglycerols. Tucuma mid-fraction showed characteristics of a pseudoplastic fluid behaviour and pseudo-β' crystals as palm stearin and palm mid-fraction. Therefore, tucuma mid-fraction has potential application in the food industry to replace palm and trans-fat oils.