Lathyrus sativus, containing a lathyritic principle, called ß-ODAP (ß-N-Oxalyl-L-α, ß-diaminopropionic acid), is widely grown and consumed in Ethiopia. It is a hardy crop grown under various agro-ecological situations. The major drawback in the use of the legume is the fact that the seeds, in common with other legumes, are not easily rehydrated, are difficult to cook, the seed coat is difficult to remove and long cooking time is required by traditional processing methods for tenderization. In this study, the effect of processing methods like blanching, soaking and cooking on water absorption, leached solids, swelling power, cooking time and sensory qualities of grass pea seeds were investigated. The soaking solutions used were mixed with salt solution, wood ash solution and double distilled de-ionized water. Blanching significantly (p < 0.05) increased total water absorbed, swelling power, leached solids and reduced cooking time compared to unbalanced seeds. Soaking blanched seeds in salt or wood ash solution was noted to be most effective in promoting seed softening during cooking, compared to double distilled water. Blanched grass pea seeds soaked for 12 hours in the three soaking solutions caused reduction of 60 %, 73 % and 68 %, respectively, in cooking time. In contrast, unblanched grass pea seeds soaked for 12 hours in the three soaking solutions caused reduction of 30 %, 46 % and 40 %, respectively, in cooking time. Water absorption, swelling power and leached solids values were negatively correlated (p < 0.05) with the cooking time. The study results indicated that blanching and hydration of grass pea seeds improved the sensory characteristics of cooked seeds, significantly reduced the cooking time and increased the weight and texture of the cooked seeds. Application of blanching preceded by soaking at village level as an integral part of traditional methods of processing grass pea seeds, thus offers the dual advantage of saving of valuable fuels by shortening cooking time, as well as rendering the seeds more acceptable to consumers. In the absence of salt, wood ash suspension treatment may be a satisfactory alternative in the production of quick-cooking grass pea seeds.

Grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) is one of the most important food legumes in countries like Bangladesh, India and Ethiopia. The legume is nutritious, rich in protein (28-32%) and contains good quantities of essential amino acids. Consumption of Lathyrus sativus seeds has been associated for more than 2000 years with neurolathyrim caused by the nearotoxin ß-ODAP (ß-N-Oxalyl-L-α, ß-diaminopropionic acid) present in the seeds. In the present study, Lathyrus sativus seed samples collected from the traditional grass pea growing areas in the country were analyzed for characteristics such as crude protein (CP), ß-ODAP, catechin equivalents (CE), trypsin inhibitor activity (TIA), 100 seed weight, seed color and consumption habit of grass pea seeds. The CP content ranged from 272.9 g/kg -1 to 319.8 g/kg -1 dry matter, the lowest and highest CP being observed in samples collected from Grar Jarso and Akaki, respectively. There were higher variations between samples in ß-ODAP levels. On average, ß-ODAP level in samples from Akaki was about twofold higher than those from Asgido. CE, which detects simple flavonoids as well as condensed tannins, was not more than 7.66 g/kg-1 dry matter in any sample. The TIA content did not differ significantly between the samples. The correlation coefficients indicated that, ß-ODAP, CE, TIA and 100 seed weight were positively correlated (p<0.05) with CP. In contrast, CE and TIA were negatively correlated (p<0.05) with ß-ODAP. The dietary interviews revealed that grass pea has diversified uses in Ethiopia both as human food and feed or crop. The habit of consuming shiro wot (the Ethiopian traditional spiced soup-like dish), kik wot (sauce made of dehusked split seeds) kollo (roasted whole seeds), nifro (boiled whole seeds) or kitta (unlearned flat bread) prepared from grass pea alone is significantly higher (p<0.05) than the habit of consuming those food items prepared from grass pea mixed with other legumes. Further studies are warranted to understand the reasons that influenced food choices of the housewives for establishing respective ways to improve healthy consumption habits.