Microwave pretreatment of presoaked Bambara groundnut seeds enhances the functionality and phenolics-related antioxidant properties of the resultant flour

Abstract

This study investigated the e1ect of microwave pretreatment on cooking time of presoaked Bambara groundnut seeds, functional properties of resultant 4ours, and their phenolic composition and antioxidant properties. Microwave treatment signi6cantly decreased cooking time and resulted in decreased water solubility index (WSI) (by up to 66%) and nitrogen solubility index (NSI) (up to 81%) of the resultant 4ours, as well as a decrease in pasting viscosity and enthalpy compared to raw 4our. However, the 1200Wtreatment resulted in higher pasting viscosity, WSI, and NSI than the 900Wtreatment. .ere were di1erences in type of 4avonoids and phenolic acids between the two types of Bambara groundnut seeds, while microwave treatment caused certain increase and decrease in individual 4avonoids, such as catechin, quercetin-3-O-glucoside, and hesperidin. .e 4ours maintained good radical scavenging antioxidant activity and protected plasmid DNA from oxidative damage. Overall, the study suggests that microwave pretreatment shows potential in alleviating the hard-to-cook Bambara groundnut seeds in producing 4our with functional and antioxidant properties.