Abstract

GRANITO, Marisela; GUERRA, Marisa; TORRES, Alexia  and  GUINAND, Julieta. Efecto del procesamiento sobre las propiedades funcionales de Vigna Sinensis . INCI [online]. 2004, vol.29, n.9, pp.521-526. ISSN 0378-1844.

Cowpea (Vigna sinensis) is a tropical legume that is part of the daily diet of many Latin American regions, where it is mostly consumed as whole grain. Given its nutritional potential, it is important to increase its consumption and diversify its use as an ingredient in foodstuff development. To achieve this, it is important to know the functional properties of the raw material as well as those of the processed one. In this work, properties such as water and fat absorption, emulsifying, foaming and jelling capacities of flours of two varieties of a Venezuelan cowpea were evaluated. It was found that wet thermal processing, as well as natural fermentation, increased the capacity to absorb water and fat, but decreased foaming capacity as well as the foam stability. Natural fermentation for 48h at 42ºC does not alter the emulsifying capacity of the raw flours. Based on the results, the incorporation of fermented and cooked bean flours for the manufacture of viscous foodstuffs such as soups, sauces, dough and baked products, as well as emulsified products such as mayonnaise, sauces, frozen desserts and sausages, is suggested. Its use for the manufacture of fried foodstuffs such as patties, croquettes and doughnuts could also be suggested.

Keywords : Frijol; Procesamiento; Propiedades Funcionales; Vigna Sinensis.