Leafy vegetables fortification enhanced the nutritional profile and reduced the glycemic index of yellow cassava pasta
Oluranti Mopelola Lawal, Vincenzo Fogliano, Imke Rotte, Tayo Nathaniel Fagbemi, Matthijs Dekker, Anita R. Linnemann
Abstract
, almost four times higher than that of the unfortified YCP. Leaf powders in the cassava pasta also favoured the retention of micronutrients during cooking and slowed down the starch digestibility. The retention during cooking was up to 91% in YPU10 for beta-carotene with no loss in iron, while the bioaccessibility of beta-carotene was impeded, the zinc retention was high and became significantly more bioaccessible with leaf addition and cooking. The estimated glycemic index of YCP was reduced by 19% and 15% in YPU10 and YPA10, respectively. The inclusion of the vegetables also reduced the glycemic index of the fortified YCP. Thus, adding leafy vegetable powder up to 10% into YCP is a promising approach to both valorise yellow provitamin A biofortified cassava and enhance the nutritional value.