By Aburime, Lilian Chinelo
The aim of this study was to determine the effect of different processing methods on the chemical composition of African yam bean (Sphenostylis stenocarpa) flours and the organoleptic properties of it’s gruels. The seeds of cream coloured African yam bean (AYB) and lime were purchased from Oye Igbo-Eze and Ogige Nsukka markets, respectively in Enugu State, Nigeria. The seeds were sorted and divided into 4 equal portions of 1.5kg each. One portion was washed and fermented in tap water at a seed- water ratio of 1:3 (w/v), for 24h. The second portion was fermented in tap water (1:3 w/v) containing 30 tablespoonful of freshly squeezed lime for 24h. The third portion was fermented in tap water containing lime (30 tablespoonful of lime) (1:3 w/v) for 48h. They were separately sundried for 72h and roasted in a hot sauce pan until cracking. The fourth portion (control) was washed, drained and roasted in a hot sauce until cracking. The AYB samples were separately milled into fine flours and stored in separate airtight containers for chemical analysis and gruel preparations.