Composition and Pasting Properties of Breadfruit (<i>Artocarpus communis Forst</i>) from South-West States of Nigeria

Abstract

Breadfruit (BF) is an underutilised crop in Nigeria. Information on its composition and the behaviour of its flour during cooking are important requirements for enhancing the utilisation of BF. Flours of BF obtained from three towns in South-West Nigeria were analysed for their chemical and pasting properties. Starch, crude fibre, ash, fat, protein and pasting properties were evaluated. Starch was the predominant carbohydrate, representing about 60.4 to 65.8% in the pulp and 47.5 to 57.5% in the peel. Crude fibre values varied from 6.31 to 9.04%. There was no
significant difference between the crude fibre contents of the pulp and peels. Ash content ranged from 2.77 to 4.78% with the peels having significantly higher values than the pulp. Fat content ranged from 0.43 to 0.65%. The pulps had significantly higher protein content than the peels. Peak viscosity varied significantly across locations with the peels having significantly lower viscosity than the pulps. The peels were significantly hot stable with breakdown viscosity values of 6.92 to 7.95 RVU compared to the pulps (72.33 to 210.77RVU). Final viscosity of the pulp was higher than
that of the peels. Higher setback viscosity values were observed in the  pulps than the peels and the former cooked in significantly shorter time (3.67 to 3.77 min) than the peels (8.93 to 8.99 min). The study revealed considerable differences in the composition of breadfruit grown in different locations in Nigeria.