KARAKTERISTIK MUTU ORGANOLEPTIK OLAHAN COKLAT DENGAN LAMA FERMENTASI YANG BERBEDA PADA BIJI KAKAO LINDAK (Theobroma cacao L.)”.

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui karakteristik mutu organoleptik olahan coklat dengan lama fermentasi yang berbeda pada biji kakao lindak. Fermentasi hingga pengeringan biji kakao dilaksanakan  di RT 12 Kelurahan Sungai Asam Kecamatan Pasar Jambi dan proses pengolahan coklat serta analisis organoleptik olahan coklat dilaksanakan di Laboratorium Dasar Universitas Batanghari Jambi mulai bulan Mei sampai Juli 2019. Penelitian dirancang menggunakan rancangan acak lengkap (RAL), dengan perlakuan lama fermentasi yang berbeda, sebagai berikut: F0 = tidak difermentasi, F1 = fermentasi 2 hari,  F2 = fermentasi 4 hari, F3 = fermentasi 6 hari,  dan F4 = fermentasi 8 hari. Setiap perlakuan diulang 3 kali sehingga terdapat 15 unit percobaan, setiap unit percobaan sebanyak 1 kg biji kakao,sehingga jumlah keseluruhan biji kakao adalah 15 kg. Peubah yang diamati adalah warna, aroma, cita rasa, kepahitan, kesukaan pada coklat, pH dan kadar air biji kakao kering. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa lama fermentasi yang berbeda berpengaruh nyata terhadap mutu organoleptik warna, aroma, cita rasa, kesukaan serta pH dan kadar air biji kakao kering, tetapi berbeda tidak nyata terhadap kepahitan. Penilaian tertinggi terhadap warna, aroma, cita rasa, kepahitan dan kesukaan terdapat pada perlakuan lama fermentasi 6 hari dan 8 hari.Kata kunci : fermentasi, kakao lindak, mutu organoleptik coklat. ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to determine the organoleptic quality characteristics of processed chocolate with different fermentation times on the cocoa beans. Fermentation up to drying of cocoa beans is carried out in RT 12 Kelurahan Sungai Asam, Pasar Jambi district and the processing of chocolate and organoleptic analysis of chocolate are carried out at the Laboratory of the University of Batanghari Jambi from May to July 2019. The study was designed using a completely randomized design (CRD), with treatment different fermentation time, as follows: F0 = not fermented, F1 = 2 days fermentation, F2 = 4 days fermentation, F3 = 6 days fermentation, and F4 = 8 days fermentation. Each treatment was repeated 3 times so that there were 15 units of experiment, each unit of experiment was 1 kg of cocoa beans, so that the total number of cocoa beans was 15 kg. Variables observed were color, flavor, taste, bitterness, preference for chocolate, pH and moisture content of dried cocoa beans. The results showed that different fermentation time significantly affected the organoleptic quality of color, flavor, taste, preferences and pH and water content of dried cocoa beans, but not significantly different from bitterness. The highest assessment of color, flavor, taste, bitterness and likeness is found in the 6-days and 8-days fermentation treatment.Keywords: fermentation, bulk cocoa, chocolate organoleptic quality