Search Results (4)

Tiger nut (Cyperus esculentus) or chufa is little known plant of high nutritious content. Popularized by a plant-based drink called “horchata de chufa,” it still offers a lot to research, being abundant in fat, starch, fiber and minerals and vitamins. To properly adjust this raw material to new purposes, the knowledge of crucial properties of the most basic blends like with soft wheat flour is needed. This article evaluates the techno-functional, viscometrical and bioactive characteristics of soft wheat:tiger nut blends of 5%, 10%, 15%, 20% and 25%. Granulometry, water-holding capacity (WHC), water absorption capacity (WAC), water absorption index (WAI), water solubility index (WSI), oil absorption capacity (OAC), hydrophilic/lipophilic index (HLI), color, pasting properties, total polyphenol content (TPC), antioxidant activity (DPPH), reducing sugars content and dough-rising capacity were assessed. The addition of tiger nut improved total polyphenol content of blends, however, It was observed that the addition of tiger nuts raised the total polyphenol content of the mixtures, but this was not statistically significant despite as much as 25% of tiger nuts. Oppositely, antioxidant activity was gradually improved with increasing tiger nut content. Pasting properties were impacted by tiger nut addition, lowering both pasting viscosity and trough viscosity, however, final viscosity was not particularly affected, being lowered by less than 15%. The highest water absorption was noted for 100% tiger nut both for WHC and WAC, however, WAI was the lowest for this sample. All the blends with tiger nut revealed improved dough-rising profile. Full article

Plant-based foods with desirable texture and nutritional value have attracted considerable interest from consumers. In order to meet the growing demand for more sustainable and health-focused products, new sources for plant-based products are needed. In this study, we aimed to develop an innovative plant-based dessert based on the underutilized crop chufa tubers (Cyperus esculentus). The chufa extract was fermented with plant-adapted lactic acid bacteria and formulated with the purpose of imitating the Danish summer dessert “cold butter-milk soup”. The effect of various bacterial fermentations and formulations on steady and oscillatory rheology, stability, dry matter, pH, and sugar profile of the product were studied and compared to a commercial cold buttermilk soup sample. A strain of Leuconostoc mesenteroides was found to create the most similar taste to a commercial sample. By adding lemon juice, sucrose, xanthan gum, and vanilla to the fermented chufa drink, the drink was found to mimic the pH, texture, acid profile, and stability of a commercial dairy-based sample, while containing a lower concentration of carbohydrates. Full article

Tigernut tubers (Cyperus esculentus) are used for the production of vegetable milk, commonly known as “Horchata de chufa” in Spain. The presence of starch in the tuber limits the yield of the milk, since this carbohydrate gelatinizes during the pasteurization of the milk and leads to the considerable solidification of this drink. The present work aims to improve the yields and extraction practice of the milk by an in situ hydrolysis of starch, using exogenous amylases of industrial or vegetable origin. The obtained results show that sprouting improves the extraction yields of tigernut milk, which goes from 50% to about 70%. This improvement in milk yield corresponds to a hydrolysis of about 35% of the starch in the tuber. The use of exogenous amylases leads to starch hydrolysis rates of 45% and 70%, respectively, for amylolytic extracts from sprouted tigernut tubers and amylase, with the corollary of a natural increase in the sweetness of milk. This technical approach makes it possible to produce a naturally sweetened tigernut milk which easily lends itself to pasteurization without a significant increase in viscosity. Full article

During the production of a traditional drink produced from the tubers of Cyperus esculentus L. also known as “horchata de chufa,” a high quantity of by-products are generated. These by-products are rich with valuable biological compounds, hence, there is a need to report their extraction conditions for further use in food production as raw materials. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate and improve the conventional extraction process, applied for recovery of phenolic compounds, total flavonoids, and total antioxidant capacity from the by-products. Independent variables for extraction were: (i) Solvent type (mixtures of ethanol-water (v/v) at 0%, 25% and 50%); (ii) temperature (40, 50 and 60 °C), and (iii) extraction time (1, 2 and 3 h). The obtained results showed that solvent type, temperature, and time significantly influenced (p < 0.05) all investigated parameters. The highest content of total polyphenols (16.02 mg GAE/100 g of dry matter; d.m.), and total flavonoids (30.09 mg CE/100 g d.m.) was achieved by ethanol at 25% (v/v), after 3 h of extraction with temperatures of 60 °C and 50 °C, respectively. The highest value of antioxidant capacity (1759.81 µM Trolox equivalents/g d.m.) was observed with 50% aqueous ethanol (v/v), at 60 °C, and 3 h of extraction. From the obtained results, it can be concluded that the by-products of “Horchata de Chufa” are an important source of antioxidant bioactive compounds. Full article