Freeze-Dried Cooked Chickpeas: Considering a Suitable Alternative to Prepare Tasty Reconstituted Dishes

Abstract

The current trend in food consumption is toward convenience, i.e., fast food. The present work aims to study the potential of incorporating freeze-dried cooked chickpeas into a complex and traditional dish in Spanish gastronomy, such as Cocido, which has this legume as the main ingredient. Cocido is a two-course meal: a thin-noodle soup and a mix of chickpeas, several vegetables, and meat portions. The textural properties, sensory qualities, and rehydration kinetics of chickpeas of three Spanish varieties were investigated to select the most suitable cooking conditions to obtain freeze-dried chickpeas of easy rehydration whilst maintaining an adequate sensory quality for the preparation of the traditional dish. The sensory quality of various vegetables and meat portions, cooked under different conditions, was evaluated after freeze-drying and rehydration. It was possible to reproduce the sensory quality of the traditional dish after rehydration with water, heating to boiling in a microwave oven for 5 min, and resting for 10 min. Therefore, it is possible to commercialize complex dishes based on pulses and other cooked and freeze-dried ingredients as reconstituted meals with a wide nutrient profile. Nevertheless, additional research is required on the shelf life, together with other economic and marketing issues such as design of a proper packaging, that would allow consumption as a two-course meal.

Prioritization of Physio-Biochemical Selection Indices and Yield-Attributing Traits toward the Acquisition of Drought Tolerance in Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.)

“…Although the country has developed the ability to export kabuli-type chickpeas in the recent past, it also imports a large quantity of desi chickpeas to meet domestic demand. Desi chickpeas have the potential to be a source of different nutrients, including high-quality proteins made up of significant amounts of vital fatty acids, amino acids, minerals, trace elements, and proteins, viz., albumins and globulins [ 7 , 8 ]. Furthermore, there is the additional requirement of increasing chickpea production to meet the projected domestic chickpea demand of 17.5 mt by 2050 [ 9 , 10 ].…”