A Review on the Cooking Attributes of African Yam Bean (Sphenostylis stenocarpa)

Abstract

African yam bean, an underutilized legume usually cultivated for its edible tubers and seeds, is known for its nutrition-rich qualities; however, the crop’s level of consumption is low. The underutilization of the crop could be attributed to several constraints, including long cooking hours of up to 24 hours. Cooking time is an important food trait; it affects consumers’ choices, nutrients content, and anti-nutrient conditions. Additionally, foods requiring long cooking hours are non-economical in terms of energy usage and preparation time. The prolonged cooking time associated with AYB places enormous limitations on the invaluable food security potentials of the crop. Therefore, the availability of AYB grains with a short cooking time could lift the crop from its present underused status. To efficiently develop AYB grains with reduced cooking time, information on the crop’s cooking variables is a prerequisite. This review presents available information on variations in cooking time, cooking methods, and processing steps used in improving cooking time and nutrient qualities in AYB. Likewise, the review brings to knowledge standard procedures that could be explored in evaluating AYB’s cooking time. This document also emphasizes the molecular perspectives that could pilot the development of AYB cultivars with reduced cooking time.

The culinary traits: cooking time and canning quality of pulses

“…This is one of the standard methods of determining cooking time in pulses (Shitta et al, 2021). Mattson (1946) developed the Mattson cooker which could hold up to100 seeds but was later modified by Jackson and Varratno-Martson to hold up to 25 seeds (Wang and Daun, 2005).…”

“…The attention of stake holders across nations, research organizations, the general public, academic institutions and policy makers are being drawn to food and nutrition security that has become part of livelihood as a result of the upturn in global population. The estimate of the global population is about 7 billion (UNICEF, 2020; Shitta et al, 2021); by 2050 however the population is expected to reach 9.3 billion (Ray, 2013;FAO, 2017). In spite of this, upscaling the adoption and use of sustainable crops offer reasonable possibilities in increasing food production in the mist of the rising challenges (Shitta, 2021).…”

“…The estimate of the global population is about 7 billion (UNICEF, 2020; Shitta et al, 2021); by 2050 however the population is expected to reach 9.3 billion (Ray, 2013;FAO, 2017). In spite of this, upscaling the adoption and use of sustainable crops offer reasonable possibilities in increasing food production in the mist of the rising challenges (Shitta, 2021). Pulses are one of the useful crops for improving the nutritional security worldwide especially in Nigeria.…”

Future Use Prospects of Legumes through Improvement and the Challenges Faced

“…This will not only extend the shelf life, but also diversify food by increasing the options for the legume produce use. The process is done after the grains have recorded a reduced moisture content of 4% or less [5]. After that, the grains are taken to the grinding machine after which processed into flour.…”

“…Breeding is done to reduce grain shattering in legumes especially during harvesting stage. This is by preventing the chances of the pods to open which leads to losses through spillage [4,5]. All these are some of the many examples which are believed to form the basis for this chapter.…”