Development of a synbiotic water kefir, dragon fruit, and inulin-medium-chain triglyceride drink as a candidate for an antihyperlipidemic beverage.

Consumer demand for palatable functional beverages with metabolic health benefits is increasing. Water kefir is a plant-based probiotic drink associated with improved metabolic profiles, immune modulation, and anti-inflammatory effects. Combining probiotics with prebiotics (synbiotics) may further enhance these benefits, although synbiotic beverages remain underdeveloped. This study aimed to develop and characterize a synbiotic water kefir beverage formulated with red dragon fruit and 20% inulin-medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) as a potential Indonesian functional beverage. Physicochemical stability (pH and viscosity) was evaluated during 95 days of production. Microbiological safety (Salmonella and Escherichia coli), sensory acceptability, titratable acidity, total phenolic content, ethanol concentration, carbohydrate content, and cholesterol-lowering activity in an obesity-induced mouse model were assessed. The beverage exhibited stable physicochemical properties (pH 4.18 ± 0.01; viscosity 197.8 ± 0.15 cP) throughout production. Salmonella and E. coli were not detected. Hedonic evaluation indicated overall acceptance, with all attributes scoring ≥3 ("liked"); the dragon fruit color received the highest score, while fermented aroma was acceptable but scored lowest. Total phenolics reached 2.514 ± 0.333 mg GAE/100 mL, titratable acidity was 0.399% ± 0.054%, ethanol content was 0.44% ± 0.0026% (w/w), and carbohydrate content was 22.73% ± 0.38% (w/w). In obese mice, the synbiotic beverage significantly reduced total cholesterol levels. The dragon fruit 20% inulin-MCT synbiotic water kefir is microbiologically safe, sensorially acceptable, and physicochemically stable, with antioxidant potential and cholesterol-lowering activity in vivo, supporting its potential as a functional beverage.