Variation in the functional properties of blends of heat-treated local thickening seeds and cocoyam flour

Abstract

The effects of pre-milling heat treatment types on the functional properties of the resultant flour blends of some indigenous thickening seeds and cocoyam (ede-ocha) at various percentages were examined. Flours of indigenous thickening seeds of achi, ofo and ukpo, and that of cocoyam were used in this work. Functional analyses showed that the blend type of ofo-cocoyam flour had better swelling index (SI) (3.28±0.28) and water absorption capacity (WAC) (5.10±1.77ml/g) than that of ukpo-cocoyam; ukpo-cocoyam blend exhibited better oil absorption capacity (OAC) (1.41±0.21ml/g), though not significantly higher than ofo-cocoyam and achi-cocoyam (p≤0.05). Among treatment types, flour of boiled sample had better SI (3.35±0.60) and WAC (4.56±1.58ml/g) than that of the roasted sample which gave better OAC (1.45±0.33ml/g) that was statistically equal to boiled blend (1.39±0.23ml/g), steamed blend (1.26±0.27ml/g) and raw blend (1.44±0.29ml/g). Among blending ratios, 25% cocoyam (CY) flour blend had significantly higher WAC (5.07±0.62ml/g) than the control and other blends, with SI of 3.06±0.59 which statistically equal to the 75% cocoyam flour blend (3.12±0.53). The boiled sample exhibited better functional properties than others; such that ofo-CY exhibited better functional properties than other blends types as the 25% CY flour sample exhibited better functional properties than other blend ratio samples. Further work should be directed to investigate this experiment with another species of cocoyam to check whether remarkable improvements can be obtained in the characteristics of the resultant flour blend with achi, ofo, ukpo.

The Phytochemical and Antifungal Efficiency of Bean Leaf and Root against Some Pathogenic Fungi Isolated from Spoilt Vegetables Sold within Anambra Metropolies

“…In order to find new opportunities to create more strong medications against microbial diseases, researchers are increasingly focusing on ethnomedicine [6]. As a result, a number of medicinal plants have been screened for possible antibacterial activity [7].…”

Production, Proximate Compositions and Dry Matters of Stored <i>achicha</i> and <i>mpoto - </i>Cocoyam Based Products

“…Cocoyam is commonly referred to as Ede in Igbo land of Nigeria. Cocoyam's Taro and Tannia have remained the two varieties mainly grown in Nigeria [1]. The taro varied botanically known as Colosasia esculenta and commonly called Coco-India originated from Asia, while tannia (Xanthosoma sagittifolium) originated from America but were both introduced and grown in West Africa [2].…”

“…The corm contains mainly starch and water together with small quantities of protein, fat, ash, vitamins B and C. The carbohydrate content of taro cultivated in different locations varied. The starch extracted from taro corms appears as fine granules in the 0.5 to 5 microns range [10], and thus offers smooth textured starch gel [1]. Moreover, the fine starch granule was reported to improve the binding and reduced breakage of snack products [9,11].…”

The Anti-Nutritional and Proximate Composition of Rain Tree (Samanea saman) Pod Samples

“…The rain tree (Samanea saman Merr.) belongs to the family of leguminosae (pulse family) [1]. It is commonly called -Saman‖, -Rain tree‖, -monkey pod‖ and -Cow tarmarind‖ in English, while it is called -Acacia preta‖ and -Cenizaro‖ in Spain.…”