Germinated Barley Cultivars: Effect on Physicochemical and Bioactive Properties

Germination is an excellent green food development process for improving the nutritional content of grains. Baking with sprouted barley flour is highly recommended to get the most out of barley nutrition. Soaking and sprouting whole grains helps to release their nutrients, and then the body can absorb and use the various vitamins and minerals contained in the grain, making the grains more health-beneficial. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of germination of different barley cultivars on the improved health-benefit quality of flours. Germination of different barley cultivars resulted in a significant increase in ash, protein and fiber content, antioxidant properties (total flavonoids content, total phenolic content, antioxidant activity, metal chelating activity, and ABTS(+) scavenging activity), and a*, b*, and redness intensity values related to color parameters, compared to the L* value of germinated flours which decreased. Several studies have shown that digestibility and nutrient absorption improve when grains are processed, soaked, and sprouted and that the levels of vitamins, minerals, proteins, and antioxidants also increase. The present study results are in line with highlighting the benefit of germination in helping for a better valorization and increasing potential applications of barley.