Effects of Drying Methods on Proximate and Physico-chemical Properties of Fufu Flour Fortified with Soybean

Aims: Effects of drying methods on proximate and physico-chemical properties of fufu flour fortified with soybeans was investigated.
Study Design: Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was employed in this work.
Place and Duration of Study: Department of Food Science and Technology, Osun State Polytechnic, Iree, Osun State, Nigeria, between January 2013 and August 2013.
Methodology: The peeled cassava roots (Manihot esculenta crantz) were steeped in water for two days. The roots were thereafter grated. The grated pulp was steeped in water for another two days for fermentation. The fermented pulp was sieved and packed in jute bags and dewatered using hydraulic press. The cassava cake was pulverized by hand and dried using oven, sun and solar drying methods. Soybean seeds were washed and boiled for 20 mins. The boiled seeds were drained and dehulled to remove seed coats. The dehulled soybeans seeds were dried, milled, sieved and packaged. Flour from cassava and soybean were mixed in the ratio of 80%:20% for this research work.
Results: The protein contents of fufu fortified flours using different drying methods were higher than fufu flour. Bulk density, water absorption capacity, swelling capacity and gelation of fufu and fufu fortified flours were not affected by the drying methods. But there was increase in the proximate and functional properties due to soybean inclusion into the flours as the values were higher than that of fufu flours. Viscosities of fufu flour were higher than the fortified fufu flour.
Conclusion: There were increase in proximate constituents and functional properties of the fufu flours with addition of soybean flour. The foam capacity and pasting parameters were significantly affected by the drying methods coupled with addition of soybean flour.