From lesser-known to super vegetables: the growing profile of African traditional leafy vegetables in promoting food security and wellness.

There are hundreds of traditional leafy vegetables and wild food plants of horticultural and nutritional significance in Africa. These lesser-known crops and wild food plants that are highly adapted to harsh growing conditions thrive with little care and are available when other sources of food fail or are out of season. They are rich in micronutrients and are often the cheapest sources of many essential vitamins and minerals in many localities.

Chemical and functional properties of cassava starch, durum wheat semolina flour, and their blends.

High-quality cassava starch (HQCS) produced from high-yielding low-cyanide improved cassava variety, TMS 30572, was mixed with durum wheat semolina (DWS) on a replacement basis to produce flour samples containing 0, 20, 30, 50, 70, and 100% cassava starch. They were analyzed for chemical composition (proximate, amylose, free sugars, starch, wet gluten, and cyanide) and functional properties (pasting, swelling power, solubility, water absorption, water binding, starch damage, diastatic and α-amylase activity, dough mixing, and stability). Protein, carbohydrate, fat, and ash of flour samples ranged from 0.

Effects of sodium benzoate on storage stability of previously improved beverage from tamarind (Tamarindus indica L.).

The effect of sodium benzoate on the quality attributes of improved tamarind beverage during storage was investigated. Tamarind beverages were produced according to a previously reported improved method, with or without chemical preservatives (100 mg/100 mL sodium benzoate). Tamarind beverage produced according to traditional processing method served as the control.

A preliminary study on the use of tempe-based formula as a weaning diet in Nigeria.

Tempe, an Indonesian mold fermented food, was prepared from cowpeas and soybeans using the traditional oriental process with modifications where appropriate. Four complementary foods were developed from whole maize meal or dehydrated fermented maize (ogi) flour fortified with either cowpea tempe or soybean tempe. Wholesomeness and potentials of the vanilla-flavored foods as weaning diets were determined.

Nutritional and sensory evaluation of tempe-fortified maize-based weaning foods.

Maize-based weaning foods prepared from whole maize meal or dehydrated fermented maize (ogi) flour fortified with soybean, cowpea or groundbean tempe, with or without the addition of melon seed flour were fed to 40 albino weanling rats. The nutrient quality of the weaning foods was monitored by the measurement of protein efficiency ratio (PER), net protein ratio (NPR), true digestibility (TD), biological value (BV) and net protein utilization (NPU). Amino acid composition and amino acid scores were determined.