Effect of thermal
processing on carotenoids compared among organic and conventional vegetables
Annapurna Reddy A., Vimala Y., Sreenivasa Rao J., Goudar Giridhar and Manne Munikumar
Res. J. Chem. Environ.; Vol. 29(5); 27-35;
doi: https://doi.org/10.25303/295rjce027035; (2025)
Abstract
The nutritional requirements are fulfilled by the vegetables through their daily
consumption. Carotenoids are vital components of the vegetables which provide various
health benefits apart from providing pigmentation to the plant crops. During cooking
processes, various nutrients are either degraded or increased depending upon the
type of cooking method employed. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the
effect of different cooking methods on the carotenoids composition among organic
and conventional vegetable crops. The samples in the present study included six
vegetables divided into three groups depending on the nature of vegetables as green
leafy vegetables, tubers and traditional vegetables. Moringa and amaranth were green
leafy vegetables, carrot and sweet potato were tubers and tomato and bitter gourd
were traditional vegetables. The cooking methods employed in the study included
microwave, steaming, boiling with lid and boiling without lid processes.
The results observed in the study showed the presence of lutein and β-carotene in
all the analyzed samples whereas β-cryptoxanthin, α-carotene and γ-carotene were
not found in any of the samples with exception of carrot for the presence of α-carotene.
The different cooking processes had varying effects on the carotenoids composition
with almost all cooking processes showing the reducing trend in comparison to the
uncooked samples. The highest total carotenoids were found in Moringa samples (19413-34930
g/100g) whereas the least total carotenoids were found in bitter gourd samples
(493-675 g/100g). The present study will provide a detailed insight about the required
information.
