Search results

Due to the increased consumption of fast foods in India, especially among the youngsters, obesity and related health ailments have become a serious concern. Fast foods provide empty calories which calls for an urgent need to improvise their nutritional value rendering them “nutrient dense”. The purpose of this research was development and nutritional evaluation of baked products incorporated with partially defatted peanut flour.

Three baked products, namely, pizza base, buns and bread were developed using standardized recipes with different levels of incorporation of defatted peanut meal flour. These products were organoleptically evaluated by a trained panel of ten judges using nine-point hedonic scale. The selected samples of each product were nutritionally evaluated for proximate composition and mineral content along with their respective control samples.

Results from sensory evaluation revealed that pizza base, buns and bread were most acceptable at 10, 10 and 15 per cent level of incorporation of partially defatted peanut flour, respectively. The developed products were found to have high protein, crude fiber, calcium and iron, i.e. 11.5-12.4 per cent, 1.4-1.8 per cent, 19.2-20.4 mg/100 g, 1.8-2.3 mg/100 g content, respectively. p-values for the same were also calculated.

Keeping in view the nutritional benefits of peanut flour and trending consumption of bakery products among children and other age groups, these products can be commercialized to improve the nutritional value of empty calorie baked products as these products are consumed very frequently. Defatted peanut meal although being nutrient rich has generally been used as animal feed or is discarded as waste. The role of this meal in the human diet has not been explored to the best.

Due to the high prevalence of malnutrition and iron-deficiency anaemia in children and women, the purpose of this paper is the development and nutritional evaluation of food products supplemented with niger seeds.

Three products, namely, atta ladoo, mathi and salty biscuits, were developed using standardized recipes with different levels of niger seeds. These products were organoleptically evaluated by a trained panel of 12 judges using an eight-point hedonic rating scale. Nutritional evaluation was also carried out to draw comparison between the developed product and its control counterpart. Proximate composition, in vitro protein digestibility and iron estimation were carried out using standard methods.

The findings revealed that the products supplemented with niger seeds at a level of 20 per cent were acceptable. The supplemented products were found to have higher protein (13-15 per cent), fat (20-31 per cent), fibre (4.5-5.7 per cent) and iron (11.8-16.1 mg/100 g) content as compared to their control (0 per cent supplementation) counterparts. Along with that, addition of niger seeds resulted in significant (p < 0.05) increase in the in vitro protein digestibility of the supplemented products.

Further, the feeding trials can be conducted by using formulated products so as to check the nutrient bioavailability of these products.

Keeping in view the economic and nutritional benefits of niger seeds, the products supplemented with them can be incorporated in daily diet so as to enhance the nutritional status of an individual. While niger seeds have been used in the animal’s and bird’s feed, limited research has focused on their use in food products used for human consumption in daily diet. Further, their nutritional role in the human diet has not been explored much.

This study aims to investigate the physicochemical and sensory characteristics of fried peanut cracker snacks coated with wheat (80%) and cassava (20%) composite flours.

The peanuts were sorted, boiled, drained, roasted, coated and fried at temperature of 150–180°C for 154.6–240 s. The fried peanut cracker-coated (FPCC) snacks produced were analyzed for proximate composition (moisture, crude fat, crude protein, crude fibre, total ash and carbohydrate contents), rancidity indices (peroxide value, free fatty acid and iodine value), physical properties, colour (lightness, redness and yellowness), texture (hardness, fracturability, adhesiveness and cohesiveness) and sensory qualities (taste, crispiness, colour, odour and overall acceptability).

There were significant differences in moisture (p = 0.000), crude fat (p = 0.001), crude protein (p = 0.000), crude fibre (p = 0.001), total ash (p = 0.00) and carbohydrate (p = 0.001). The range of values for moisture content, crude fat, crude protein, crude fibre, total ash and carbohydrate contents were 2.6%–4.9%, 27.1%–34.7%, 21.0%–26.3%, 3.1%–4.1%, 2.1%–2.5% and 33.9%–36.4%, respectively, while peroxide, free fatty acid and iodine values ranged from 1.2 to 2.0 mEq/kg, 32.8–47.0 mg KOH/g and 1.2–2.0 gI₂/100 g, respectively. The physical properties of the FPCCs showed decrease as the frying temperature and time increased. The values for lightness (L*), redness (a*) and yellowness (b*) ranged from 26.5 to 52.2, 11.4 to 22.0 and 37.0 to 42.5, while the texture attributes such as hardness (p = 0.001), fracturability (p = 0.023), adhesiveness (p = 0.001) and cohesiveness (p = 0.011) were significantly different and it ranged from 28.7 to 53.4 N, 28.6 to 48.3 N, 1.0 to 2.4 N/s and 0.0–0.1, respectively. The sensory score for wheat–cassava composite flours used for coating the snacks decreased as the frying temperature and time increased. The study shows that 20% of cassava flour incorporated into the formulation of coated snacks does not affect its overall acceptability.

There are scanty information/published works on physicochemical and sensory characteristics of fried peanut cracker coated with wheat–cassava composite flour.

This research work helps in producing fried peanut cracker coated with composite wheat–cassava flours.

The study shows that 20% of cassava flour incorporated into the formulation of coated snacks does not affect its overall acceptability.

The unleavened bread called chapatis in vernacular language is the staple food of the majority of North Indians, which is generally prepared from wheat flour. However, wheat flour contains 8‐12 per cent protein and is limited in essential amino acid, so supplementation of partially defatted soy dhal, sorghum, rice, maize and pearl millet will help to improve the nutritional value of chapatis. This paper seeks to address this issue.

Wheat flour was supplemented with salt‐treated partially defatted soy dhal, sorghum, rice, maize and pearl millet (50:10:10:10:10:10). Different salt treatments were given to soy dhal so as to remove its typical beany flavour. Different flours were mixed with water to form dough followed by preparation of chapati on flat iron plates. These were further evaluated organoleptically by the panel of judges. On the basis of organoleptic evaluation the best combination was used for nutritional evaluation.

Organoleptic evaluation of developed chapatis indicated that they were acceptable in terms of various sensory parameters. Nutritional evaluation of unprocessed composite flour, wheat flour chapatis and composite flour chapatis revealed a significant increase in moisture and protein content and non‐significant difference in ash and crude fibre contents of composite flour chapatis when compared with unprocessed composite flour and wheat flour chapatis. Various processing methods, namely dough making and roasting involved in chapati making, significantly (p<0.05) reduced the phytic (11 per cent) and polyphenol (64 per cent) content of the developed chapati compared with unprocessed composite flour. As a result the protein and starch digestibility of the developed chapati was improved over the unprocessed composite flour.

Further research is needed regarding the amino acid profile of the developed chapati.

Wheat flour should be supplemented with different cereals so as to improve the nutritional value.

The paper has significance in terms of improving the nutritional quality of the chapati without any extra input of time and energy.

The purpose of this study is to assess the protein (biological) quality of pecan and pine nuts supplemented diets in male Wistar albino rats.

A randomized and controlled study (45 d) was conducted in male Wistar albino rats (n = 60) comprising six groups, namely, control (Cc), control with 1% cholesterol (C_C1), Pecan group (Pe), Pecan group supplemented with 1% cholesterol (Pi₁), Pine group supplemented with 1% cholesterol (Pi₁). Protein quality of supplemented diet/s was assessed in terms of various biological indices.

Pe and Pi groups exhibited normal growth when compared with Cc. Despite showing higher feed and protein intake, Pe and Pi groups exhibited significantly (P = 0.023) lower weight gain than Cc. There was no significant difference between the protein efficiency ratio (3.8 ± 0.2 and 3.7 ± 0.2), apparent protein digestibility (81.5 ± 2.2 and 80.5 ± 2%), true protein digestibility (90.6 ± 1.1 and 88.5 ± 3.5%) and biological value (BV) (75.6 ± 0.9 and 72.6 ± 0.9%) of Pe and Pi groups, respectively. Pe group presented considerably higher net protein utilization (68.5 ± 1.4 vs 64.4 ± 0.8%) and protein retention efficiency (34.8 ± 1.1 vs 31.2 ± 1.3%) than Pi group. Overall, pecan-based diet displayed superior biological quality over pine nut. Antinutrients present in the nuts did not show any major negative effect on the growth, digestibility and bioavailability of the nutrients in rats. BV ranging from 72.6% to 75.6% suggested a satisfactory quality of experimental nut-based diets.

Further investigation of pecan and pine nuts consumption to examine the potential benefits and associated mechanisms of action is warranted which would aid in a better understanding and to establish nutritional recommendations.

Overall, the exploitation of pecan and pine nut flours for the development of value-added food products is favorable from a nutritional point of view.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a comprehensive overview of multiple functions of sunflower seeds including their nutritional and nutraceutical benefits.

The literature review is of the chemical composition of sunflower seeds, their health benefits and their utilization in different products.

“We are what we eat.” All living creatures need to take in nutrients to live. Nutrients provide energy for processes in the body and can promote growth, maintenance and repair. The classes of nutrients are carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, and minerals. Sunflower seeds are a good source of all these nutrients. Plant foods such as fruits, vegetables, oil crops and whole grains contain many components that are beneficial to human health. Research supports that some of these foods, as part of an overall healthful diet, have the potential to delay the onset of many age‐related diseases.

Currently available information on sunflower seeds is insufficient. These observations have led to continuing research aimed at identifying specific bioactive components in foods, such as antioxidants, which may be responsible for improving and maintaining health. Antioxidants are present in foods as vitamins, minerals, carotenoids, and polyphenols.

This review is unique in its comprehensive nature. This article will reflect the role of sunflower seeds as nutritional and nutraceutical package.

The purpose of this paper was to investigate the acceptability of processed tempeh and the effect of stir-frying on uncooked tempeh composition, total phenolic content (TPC), antioxidant (AO) activities and the phytic acid (PA) concentration.

Fermentation was performed in the solid-state using soybean (Glycine max) inoculated with Rhizopus oligosporus. The acceptability of tempeh was evaluated by administering a questionnaire. The TPC of uncooked and stir-fried tempeh was examined using Folin-Ciocalteu’s method, and PA was analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography. AO activities were measured by the thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) and ferric ion reducing/antioxidant power methods. The stir-fried tempeh was more acceptable than other preparations to the panelists.

In comparison with the uncooked tempeh, stir-fried tempeh showed higher fat composition, in addition to decreased levels of minerals, PA and TBARS.

Soy foods are an important source of protein. However, conventional cooking methods could change the chemical properties in soy foods. To avoid additional oil that adds calories, consumers might opt for other cooking methods, such as steaming.

To reduce energy consumption, the time needed of drying, and the loss of ß-carotene content, and ascorbic acid content, response surface methodology (RSM) was employed for optimization.

To reduce energy consumption, the time needed of drying, and the loss of ß-carotene content, and ascorbic acid content, response surface methodology (RSM) was employed for optimization.

The results show that the optimum solar-assisted heat pump drying (SAHPD) conditions for drying pumpkin slice were: drying temperature of 67.40 °C, loading density of 1.05 kg/m³, and material thickness of 4 mm. Under these conditions, slice of pumpkin were dried in 440.637 min, where the unit energy consumption, ascorbic acid content, and ß-carotene content were 16.737 kJ/g, 25.682 mg/ (100–g dried sample), and 10.202 mg/g, respectively. The structure of the samples dried using the optimized SAHPD method exhibited a more complete cell morphology than those dried using heat pump drying when examined using scanning electronic microscopy.

This suggests that the optimized SAHPD conditions used in this study are important for production and processing.