ABSTRACT
Health organizations recommend consumption of pulses such as beans, chickpeas or lentils, as it is recognized that frequent pulse consumption may reduce serum cholesterol levels and help reduce risks of coronary heart disease and diabetes. Pulses, especially the common beans consumed as whole grains, provide plenty of proteins, starch, dietary fi bers, minerals and vitamins. Potential health benefi ts of these legumes rarely appear in Western diets and are often overlooked as functional foods. Nyakuni et al. (2008) evaluated four common bean varieties, Kawanda K131, K132, NABE4 and NABE11, for the relationship between development of hard-to-cook defect and changes in nutritional quality during six-month storage under ambient conditions. All varieties developed the hard-to-cook defect, but the extent varies with variety. Cooking time increased by 113% in K131; 95.3% in K132; 56.4% in NABE4 and 42.93% in NABE11 after six months. Development of the hard-to-cook defect is associated with reduction in phytic acid content, in vitro protein and starch digestibility. Susceptibility to hard-to-cook defect during storage could be attributed to a phytic acid interaction with proteins and carbohydrates, and is also associated with small seed size. Breeding for large seed size could, therefore, help reduce the development of hard-to-cook defect.
