Resistant starch in selected raw and processed legumes

The resistant starch (RS) content of Bengal gram (Cicer arietinum), field pea (Pisum sativum), lentil (Lens esculenta), red gram (Cajanus cajan), green gram (Phaseolus aureus Roxb) and cow pea (Vigna catjang) ranged from 9.00 to 19.5 g/100 g; maximum in lentil and minimum in Bengal gram. The RS content differed with variety, the coefficient of variation (CV) ranged from 3 to 26%. The RS content of decorticated legumes was higher (14.2-21.5 g/100 g) than the whole legumes. Pressure-cooking of decorticated legumes increased the RS content, the increase being 153.9% for red gram and 66.5% for green gram. Storage of pressure-cooked decorticated red gram at 4 C for 12 and 24 h further increased the RS content. Reheating resulted in a reduction. Germination, dehydration and frying resulted in a decrease-in RS content by 32.1, 1.7 and 18.3%, respectively. Legumes contain appreciable amounts of RS, which may be influenced by variety and may be further modified by different processing techniques.