Abstract

S2-15

Studies in the Fortification of Garri (a fermented cassava product) by Addition of Soybean Flour

Umeh C.N. and Okafor N.

It was desired to improve the low protein content of garri made from cassava by the addition of defatted soybean flour to the fermenting cassava mash (dewatered and undewatered).  Three times the amount of hexane was mixed with soybean flour in a 4L beaker and left overnight on a magnetic stirrer. Residual hexane was evaporated out of the soybean slurry by souxalet extraction giving rise to defatted soybean flour.  Measured quantities (0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 5, 10, 15, 25 %w/w) of soybean four were added to the cassava mash samples and fermented for up to 96 h at the end of which the mash was fried into garri. The crude protein content of the garri arising from the addition of 5% of the defatted soybean four (from undewatered fermenting mash) was about 8% after 48 h fermentation time.  This value tended to drop slightly with longer fermentation.  The sample of locally purchased garri gave a value of 0.15%.  The organoleptic quality rating by a panel of tasters gave the highest rating of garri prepared from fermented cassava mash (undewatered) containing 2.0% of soybean flour after 48 h fermentation (at p<0.01). Improvement of the garri crude protein by the fortification with soybean flour without the drawback of rejection by tasters due to a fault in general acceptability can be achieved.