Kabuli chickpea is traditionally consumed in Mexico. It is currently exported to countries including United States where its demand has recently increased. In order to demonstrate the effect of thermal processes on the quality of fresh chickpea, the objective of the present work was to evaluate some nutrimental and functional characteristics of raw, steamed and toasted chickpea. The partial chemical composition, total phenols, oligosaccharides, and antioxidant capacities were measured in five genotypes of chickpea. Steamed and toasted chickpea showed up to 8.4 and 25.8% less protein, respectively, than that of raw samples. Oligosaccharides, in general decreased in steamed and toasted fresh grain; however, verbascose increased on average 30.6 and 37.9% in steamed and toasted samples, respectively. Minor changes in total phenolic content were observed a result of the process. Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity increased up to 3.5 times compared to that of antioxidant capacity of raw samples. Fresh chickpea grain, raw or processed, shows attractive nutritional and antioxidant properties that can contribute to the diet and health of the person who consumes it.
Keywords: Antioxidant; Fresh chickpea; Nutrimental; Phenolics; Processing.