Abstract
Ancestral Andean crop flours (ACF) from Ecuador such as camote (Ipomea Batatas), oca (Oxalis tuberosa), achira (Canna indica), mashua (Tropaeolum tuberosum), white arracacha (Arracacia xanthorrhiza), taro (Colocasia esculenta) and tarwi (Lupinus mutabilis sweet) were characterized in terms of physico-chemical and techno-functional properties in order to identify their potential as new alternative ingredients in food products. Flour from camote, oca, achira and arracacha showed a low protein content (<5%), mashua and taro had ~9% and tarwi flour registered higher values than 52%. Carbohydrate content ranged from 56–77%, with the exception of tarwi, just reaching 6.9%. Starch content was relatively low in ACF but in taro and tarwi, starch practically constituted almost all the carbohydrates. The highest amylose content in starch, in decreasing order, was found in mashua, oca, tarwi and achira flours, the rest being ≤15%. Fiber content exceeded 10% in most crops, except for oca flour with 5.33%. Fat content was generally lower than 1%, except in tarwi with ~17%. All flours showed a gel-like behavior G′ > G″, this being very similar in camote, achira and tarwi flours. The exception was taro with G′ < G″. Mashua flour registered the highest value for phenol content (60.8 µg gallic acid equivalents/g of sample); the content of phenols was not exclusively responsible for the antioxidant activity, since flours with the highest activity were arracacha and tarwi, which presented the lowest phenol content among all flours. Principal component analyses (PCA) showed a high correlation between moisture, fiber, solubility and water absorption capacity, with viscoelastic behavior and total phenolic content; while starch content was correlated with melting temperature, poorly and inversely related to protein and fat. For PC1, achira, camote and taro flours were very similar, and different from oca and mashua flours. Tarwi showed its own characteristics according to PC1 and 2. Because of their properties, Andean crop flours could have a great potential for use in food technology.
Highlights
This article is an open access articleThe Andean region comprising Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia has been catalogued as one of the areas of the world possessing the greatest plant richness and crop diversity with an important collection of germplasm related to three of the main tubers that are the most typically consumed: oca (Oxalis tuberosa), mashua (Tropaeolum tuberosum) and melloco (Ucullus tuberosus) [1,2]
The starch content of flours was lower than expected; foods in which Andean crop flour is incorporated would be of interest for the control of the glycemic index
The color of flours was located in the area of intense yellow with tones that are slightly shifted to the orange area, probably due to the effect of Maillard reactions and caramelization resulting from their production process, some presented a yellow or orange coloration characteristic of the crop
Summary
This article is an open access articleThe Andean region comprising Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia has been catalogued as one of the areas of the world possessing the greatest plant richness and crop diversity with an important collection of germplasm related to three of the main tubers that are the most typically consumed: oca (Oxalis tuberosa), mashua (Tropaeolum tuberosum) and melloco (Ucullus tuberosus) [1,2]. By modern agriculture (mainly focused on extensive crops) as marginal lands, even with a reduced probability of producing quality food; adapting to the environment makes the growth of these crops possible [2]. Consumers are increasingly demanding both raw materials and intermediate or final products with better and varied nutritional characteristics perceived as natural [5] and, if possible, that contribute to their health and wellbeing [6] In this sense, tubers, rhizomes and legumes from the Andean region, due to their high nutritional value, could play an important role in the development of food products, even functional products, as well as covering the demand of food for people with special requirements, as it is the case of those intolerant or allergic to gluten, since some Andean crops are gluten-free. The promotion of the exploitation of these resources would be of socio-economic interest, favoring biodiversity and the impact and sustainability of the Andean region
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