Chemometric study on the effect of cooking on bioactive compounds in tomato pomace enriched sauces

Tomato pomace (TP) is an underutilized source of bioactive compounds with potential application in the food sector. A factorial experiment compared Thermomix®, Roner® (sous vide), and traditional pan-frying techniques for preparing tomato sauces, enriched or not with TP, at two temperatures and two cooking times. Multivariate analysis on metabolite data showed that TP addition significantly increased bioactive compounds, especially phenolics. OPLS-DA indicated cooking technique had a greater effect on phenolic content than temperature or time. Thermomix® released bioactive compounds to a similar extent as pan-frying, while Roner® better preserved the volatile fraction. Overall, Thermomix® increased bioactive compounds, whereas Roner® increased volatile compounds.