Fenugreek (Pusa Early Bunching) seeds were processed by using different processing methods viz. soaking, germination and roasting. Raw and processed fenugreek seed flours were analyzed for nutritional composition, anti-nutritional, and antioxidant activity. Raw fenugreek seed flour contained higher amount of dietary fiber (45.4 %) followed by 41.7 % in soaked seed flour, 40.9 % in roasted fenugreek seed flour and 31.3 % in germinated fenugreek seed flour. Processing of fenugreek seeds improved in vitro starch digestibility and in vitro protein digestibility. Soaking, germination and roasting enhanced total phenolic content and the antioxidant activity of fenugreek seed flour as compared to raw fenugreek seed flour. The phenolic content of soaked, germinated and roasted fenugreek seed flours was 54.4, 80.8 and 48.5 mg of gallic acid equivalents/g of sample in contrast to raw fenugreek seed flour (45.4 mg of gallic acid equivalents/g of sample). The antioxidant activity of the extracts of soaked, germinated and roasted fenugreek seed flours was 60.7 %, 73.9 % and 32.0 % whereas as the raw fenugreek seed flour exhibited 18.1 % antioxidant activity. Processing of fenugreek seeds also decreased phytic acid content significantly (P<0.05) as compared to raw seeds.

Abstracts NaCl treatment was optimized for maximum reduction of cyanide content in raw bamboo (Dendrocalamus strictus) shoot using response surface methodology with 4 independent variables like concentration of NaCl, thickness of bamboo shoot, amount of NaCl solution and duration of treatment at 3 levels of each variable. BoxBehnken design was used to select the levels of variables in experimental runs. Cyanide content ranged between 12.8 and 29.6 mg/kg in bamboo shoot after NaCl treatment. The effect of concentration of NaCl was higher in reducing the cyanide content followed by thickness of bamboo shoot and treatment time in decreasing order. Amount of NaCl solution did not affect the reduction of cyanide content significantly. Optimum condition was 2.4% NaCl concentration, 1.25 cm thickness of bamboo shoot, 216 ml of NaCl solution and 23 min treatment. Corresponding cyanide content was 11.2 mg/kg. Experimental verification at optimum condition gave average cyanide content of 11.3 mg/kg on fresh weight basis, which was in good agreement with predicted and was well below permissible limit (500 mg/kg). The reduction of cyanide content was of 98.3% at optimum level.

One of the variety of oat, UPO 94 was processed by two simple processing techniques. One method is malting and other is roasting. Malted and roasted oat flour as well as weaning mixes prepared from these two processed flour were analyzed for their nutrient composition, alpha amylase activity and in-vitro protein digestibility. For making weaning mix, oat flour, wheat flour, green gram and skim milk powder were taken in a ratio of 30:30:25:15 respectively. Higher moisture, ash, crude fat, energy, amylase activity, and in-vitro protein digestibility were reported in malted oat flour and weaning mix prepared from malted flour. The minerals, calcium (180.0 mg/100 g) and iron (7.9 mg/100 g) were also higher in malted weaning mix as compared to roasted weaning mix. Both malted and roasted weaning gruels were evaluated for sensory quality characteristics and both were found acceptable by the panel members.

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The present study was conducted to develop rusk from whole wheat flour (WWF) and water chestnut flour (WCF). WWF and WCF were evaluated for their nutritional composition and functional properties. Response surface methodology was used to optimize the levels of ingredients for the formulation of WCF incorporated rusk. The levels of ingredients were varied to determine their effect on responses (moisture, total ash, total phenol content [TPC], total flavonoid content [TFC], total antioxidant activity, taste, color, texture, flavor, and overall acceptability). Increase in WCF increased the moisture, total ash, TPC, TFC, total antioxidant activity, and mean sensory scores of taste and flavor of rusks. Rusks were developed on the basis of optimized conditions, that is, replacement with WCF as 46 g per 100 g of flour, fat content as 19.5 g per 100 g flour, and milk quantity as 113.3 ml per 100 g of flour. Developed rusks had better nutritional quality than control rusks. Physical characteristics of bread for developed rusks were found to be better than that of bread for control rusks. Hardness and fracturability of developed rusks were found to be more than the control rusks. WCF decreased the lightness and yellowness value, and improved the taste and flavor of developed rusks. Novelty impact statement Rusks are one of the most commonly consumed bakery products worldwide which are often developed from refined wheat flour which does not have any nutritional value. Water chestnut (WC) is undervalued crop which can be utilized to develop various food products. Water chestnut flour (WCF) is powerhouse of minerals and antioxidants. In this study, whole wheat flour and WCF are utilized to develop rusk rich in minerals and antioxidants with good sensory quality. Results indicate that WCF contains heat stable antioxidants which increased the antioxidant content of the rusks.