Nutritional and sensory quality of complementary food blended from quality protein maize, anchote (coccinia abyssinica), carrot and soybean

Abstract

Cereals-based complementary foods are commonly used in resource poor settings in developing countries. However, they are characterized by poor nutritional quality both in terms of macro and micro nutrients. This study, aimed to develop nutritionally enriched and sensorial accepted QPM based complementary food from locally available food sources. Seventeen formulations of the composite flours were prepared using D-optimal mixture design with the aid of, Design-Expert software version 8.0 with a range for QPM 45-85%, Anchote 10-20%, Carrot 5-15% and Soybean 0-20%. Standard methods were used to conduct chemical analysis and sensory evaluation of the complementary foods. The major response variables of nutritional composition, anti-nutritional factors, and functional (Physical) proprieties and sensory acceptability of formulations after cooking were investigated. Results showed that a significant difference (P<0.05) in protein, fat, carbohydrate, energy, beta carotene, Calcium and tannin content of porridge prepared from different blending ratio of ingredients. Protein, carbohydrate , calorie , β-carotene, Calcium, Iron and Zinc content of the porridge ranged from 10.25-19.01%, 58.05-70.32%, 368.38-398.7 kcal/100g, 1165- 2215μg/100g, 101.69-204.80 mg/100g, 5-6.99mg/100g and 2.205- 3.250 mg/100g. Increasing trend was observed in the protein content of the complementary food with an increase in the proportion of soybean. There is an increasing trend in the β-carotene content of the porridge with an increasing proportion of carrot. Results also indicate that an increase in the proportion of Anchote flour in the composite flour resulted in parallel increase in the Calcium content of porridge. Increasing trend was observed in the carbohydrate content of the complementary food with an increase in the proportion of QPM and Anchote flour. Results also indicated that an increase in the proportion of QPM flour and Anchote flour resulted in parallel increase in the phytate and tannin contents. Sensory evaluation results showed that the mean score of overall acceptability ranged between, 3-4.78. The optimized proportions for that above results were QPM (55%), Anchote (10%), Carrot (15%) and Soybean (20%) blending ratios. Overall, it can be concluded that locally available and low cost food ingredients used in the present study have good potential to develop complementary foods with enhanced nutritional value and sensorial acceptability for resource-poor households.