Effect of cooking and soaking on physical characteristics, nutrient composition and sensory evaluation of indigenous and foreign rice varieties in Nigeria

• Published in: African journal of biotechnology 2007-04, Vol.6 (8), p.1016-1020
• Main Authors: Ebuehi, OAT, Oyewole, A C
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Oryza sativa
• ISSN: 1684-5315; 1684-5315

The objective of this study is to ascertain the effect of cooking and soaking on the physical characteristics, nutrient composition and sensory evaluation of indigenous 'ofada' rice and foreign 'aroso' rice varieties in Nigeria. The two rice varieties were freshly purchased in the raw state, soaked in water and cooked. The physical characteristics, such as, length, width, weight, colour, purity, breakage, cooking time, dispersability and swelling capacity of the raw rice varieties were determined. The raw, soaked and cooked rice varieties were oven dried as 60 degree C for 4 h and milled to attain uniform surface area. The proximate composition and some minerals of the raw, soaked and cooked rice varieties and the sensory evaluation of the cooked rice were determined. Ofada and aroso rice varieties were brown and creamy in colour, respectively. There were significant (p0.01) differences in the levels of minerals; Ca, Fe, Mg and P, in raw, cooked and soaked ofada and aroso rice. Sensory evaluation showed that cooked aroso rice was generally preferred, in terms of colour, aroma, taste, texture and overall acceptability.