Effect of Pretreatments on Nutritional, Functional and Physicochemical Properties of Bauhinia variegata Pod Peel Powder

¹ Department of Food Processing and Technology, Gautam Buddha University, Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh
² Department of Agronomy Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University, Kanpur
³ Department of Agronomy Uttaranchal College of Science and Technology, Dehradun, Uttarakhand
⁴ Department of Environmental Science, Gautam Buddha University, Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh
⁵ Department of Botany, Dr R.M.L. Avadh University, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh

^* Corresponding authors: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Abstract

The present study was conducted to evaluate the effect of different pre-treatments: blanching (K₁) and chemical treatment (K₂), before drying, on the physicochemical, functional, color, flow, and mineral properties of Bauhinia variegate pod peel powder. The results revealed significant variations among the treatments. K2 showed lower moisture content (6.22%) and higher ash (7.46%), fat (2.24%), acidity (0.66%), and protein content (9.02%) compared to K₁. Functional properties such as water absorption capacity, oil absorption capacity, emulsifying activity, and foaming capacity were also influenced by the treatments. Colour analysis indicated higher lightness (L*) and hue values in K2 samples, suggesting better color retention. Flow properties showed slight variations between treatments, while mineral analysis demonstrated higher calcium, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, zinc, and manganese contents in K₂. In the present study, K₂ was found to be more effective in preserving nutritional and functional quality characteristics of Bauhinia variegata pod peel powder.