Influence of processing on the physiochemical, functional and pasting properties of Nigerian Amaranthus viridis seed flour: a multivariate analysis approach

Abstract

A Nigerian Amaranthus viridis seed (Tete) was subjected to various processing conditions with the view to examining the impact of processing techniques on the nutritional, functional and pasting properties of the Amaranthus viridis seed flour. The outcome of the research demonstrated that germination fundamentally increased the nutritional as well as the functional properties of the amaranth flour while autoclaving enhanced the physical, pasting properties and flowability of the flour when compared to other processing methods. Defatted amaranth flour had the highest protein solubility when compared with other processing techniques. Likewise, germination and fermentation resulted in decrease in the degree of lightness and redness of the flour. The chemometrics analysis of the data revealed that three principal components accounted for 92.65% of the total variation of the data while the herechical clustering analysis revealed that processing of the seed led to the classification of the flour into three groups. Finally, from the study, both fermentation and germination enhanced the nutritional and functional properties of the amaranth flour and subsequently could be utilized formulation of gluten-free products and being used as functional food ingredients for weaning foods and baked products.