Evaluation Of Proximate Composition And Antinutritional Factors Of Cyperusesculentus(Tigernut) As Influenced By Boiling

Abstract

Fresh Cyperusesculentus (Tigernut) Nut Were Purchased From Karaworo Market, Lokoja In Kogi State, Nigeria. The Nuts Were Processed And Used For Analysis. Fresh Nut Samples Were Divided Into Two Portions. One Portion Of The Nuts Was Cooked (Boiled) For 40mins After Which They Were Dried In An Oven And Ground Using A Moulinex Blender Into Powder. The Powder Was Packaged In A Labeled Polyethylene Bag And Kept In A Freezer (20 o c) For Analysis. The Remaining Portion (Raw) Was Directly Ground Using The Same Blender And Analyzed. The Result From The Investigation Indicated That Boiling Reduced The Proximate Composition And The Anti-Nutritional Factors In Tigernut. The Fat Content, Protein Content, Crude Content, Ash Content And Carbohydrate Reduced Significantly (P<0.05) From 12.21%, 4.13%, 8.13%, 1.80% And 33.64% To 4.53%, 1.53%, 7.79%, 0.142% And 23.96% Respectively Except Moisture Content Which Increased From 50.66% To 51.41%. Tannin, Oxalate, Alkaloid Hydrogen Cyanide (Cn) And Saponin Reduced Considerably From 0.536mg/G, 2.75mg/G, 1.54%, 4.01x10 -3 mg/Kg And 0.594% To 0.345mg/G, 2.64mg/G, 1.25%, 1.90x10 -5 And Respectively. Energy Decreased As A Result Of Boiling From 1096kj To 599kj.