Physical functional and nutritional properties of different cereals and flaxseed

Abstract

The physical, functional and nutritional properties of selected cereals (viz., wheat, corn, oat and barley) and flaxseed were studied. Thousand seeds weight, bulk density, hydration capacity, hydration index, swelling capacity and swelling index of cereals i.e. wheat, corn, barley and oat ranged from 26.88 to 256.1 g, 0.50 to 0.83 g/ml, 0.02 to 0.09 g/seed, 0.37 to 0.69, 0.01 to 0.09 ml/seed and 0.28 to 0.57, respectively. The functional properties including water absorption capacity (266.7%), gelation capacity (15%), emulsification capacity (58.82%) and swelling power (125.4%) were observed high in flaxseed. The moisture, crude protein, crude fat, ash and crude fibre of cereal grains (wheat, corn, barley and oat) varied between 7.85-10.9 g, 10.43-14.07 g, 1.38-5.63 g, 1.68-3.03 g, 1.37-3.74 g, 78.39-84.71 g and 383.9-412.5 kcal per 100 g, respectively. Crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber and energy content were found high in flaxseed as compared to cereals.