Chemical composition, nutritional value and in vitro starch digestibility of roasted chickpeas

Chickpea is considered a wholesome and nutritious food due to its nutritional properties and glycemic response. Such properties can be influenced by the thermal treatment used to cook this legume and produce a snack named leblebi. From the consumers' point of view, it is desirable to improve texture and palatability of the chickpea by the processing steps used to make leblebi. However, consumers are increasingly concerned with the nutritional value of snack foods.

Nutritional components and digestibility properties of single and double heat-treated chickpea, single and double roasted leblebi and white leblebi were studied. High sodium, starch damage and soluble dietary fiber content were observed in white leblebi; while the other samples showed significantly (P < 0.05) higher insoluble dietary fiber content. Heat treatment and processing significantly (P < 0.05) altered the viscosity and starch properties of the samples. High resistant starch content (28.28% to 30.20%) and low estimated glycemic index (38.67 to 41.28) in heat-treated chickpeas and roasted leblebi were observed.

The results indicate that heat-treated chickpea and roasted leblebi have good nutritional quality and low glycemic response. White leblebi had relatively high sodium content and glycemic response. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.