Effect of cereal germination on the energy density of togwa

Abstract

Togwa is a traditional sweet gruel prepared from malted cereal grains and is widely consumed by both adults and children. Traditional preparation techniques vary from one locality to another and this has resulted in different types of togwa varying in nutritional quality and organoleptic characteristics. Four cereal grains, maize (Zea mays), bulrush millet (Pennisetum typhoideum), sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) and finger millet (Eleusine coracona) were germinated for 0, 48, 72, 96, and 120h, dried at 50±C and milled. Flour from each cereal was used for togwa preparation. Nutrient content determination was carried out by proximate analysis and energy density determination by the calorimetric method. Results showed that crude protein varied significantly (P ≤ 0.001) among cereals, but germination did not lead to any significant increase in protein content of cereal flours, while fat content, crude fibre and ash decreased slightly. Ash content varied significantly (P ≤ 0.05) among the cereals. A significant increase (P ≤ 0.05) in sugar content was observed with germination time while energy density decreased significantly (P ≤ 0.05). Sensory analysis indicated a significant (P ≤ 0.005) increase in sweetness due to germination which improved the flavour and acceptability of the togwa. Togwa from finger millet was the most preferable. This study showed that germination of cereals could be a useful technique to improve energy density, bio-availability of nutrients and acceptability of togwa.