To determine the bioactive components and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) in selected underutilized crops of the Himalayan region viz. Barnyard millet, Grain amaranth, Rice bean, Black soybean and Horsegram. Study
It was found that black soybean had highest phenolic content after both thermal treatments (3233.76 mg GAE/100 g for pan cooked and 1883.11 mg GAE/100 g for pressure cooked samples) and TAC by both FRAP (6423.76 mg TE/100 g for pan-cooked and 4415.58 mg TE/100 g for pressure cooked) and DPPH (536.41 and 453.98 mg TE/100g for pan and pressure cooked samples, respectively) method. Among raw samples, rice bean contained the highest flavonoid content and TAC by FRAP assay. In contrast, raw grain Amaranth showed the lowest phenolic content. Further, pressurecooking was found to be better for barnyard millet, while in pulses, pan cooking yielded the best results (in terms of increased value/lower losses).
Conclusion:
It can be concluded that among pulses pan cooked black soybean was found to have a good store of bioactive compounds as compared to rice bean and horse gram. The pressurecookingmethod was found to be suitable for millet like a barnyard.