ABSTRACT
Most plant-based food materials are hygroscopic in nature and contain three types of cellular water, generally acknowledged as intercellular water, intracellular water, and cell wall water. Investigation of these three types of water in plant-based food material is complex, and data from the literature investigating these three types of cellular water in plant-based food material are inadequate and unclear. The main aim of this chapter is to present an overview of the three types of cellular water, the distribution and the investigation techniques available for studying the tissue water in fresh plant-based food material. A comparative study of the different techniques available for investigating the various levels of this cellular water in plant tissue has been presented. Finally, a discussion of the migration mechanisms of intracellular water during intermittent drying is also presented.
