The objectives for this study were the extraction of the carotenoid pigments in waste juice from canning of diced red peppers in the form of an oleoresin, quantification, characterization and use of the extracted pepper oleoresin as a colorant in French dressing. Commercial paprika oleoresin, an approved food colorant, was used as the reference for comparison with pepper oleoresin throughout the study. The mean concentration of recoverable oleoresin in waste pepper juice was found to be 0.0406% and 0.854% in terms of total dry matter with a mean A.S.T.A. color value of 2192, 2.3 times that of a commercial paprika oleoresin. The pepper and paprika oleoresins were found also to have very similar color by comparing C.I.E. color parameters. Stability of pepper oleoresin compared to paprika oleoresin was investigated by studying the effect of temperature, light and air. Pepper oleoresin was found to be more stable to heat than paprika oleoresin. The effects of other factors were found to be the same for two oleoresins. Using the analysis of variance data, regression polynomials were derived. To use pepper oleoresin as a colorant in French dressing, batches of French dressing were made containing pepper and paprika oleoresin as colorants with adjusted equal colors measured by YCIE. The color and flavor of French dressing were followed over a 45 day storage period at room temperature and normal incident light. The dressings were examined at 0, 15, 30 and 45 days. The dressings were subjected to sensory panels at each time for color and flavor evaluation and objective color measurements were made. In sensory evaluation of French dressing, no difference was found for color. Difference was found for flavor without any preference for samples containing either colorant. The objective color measurements in French dressing showed no significant change in color throughout the storage period
