Value addition and nutritional fortification of finger millet [<i>Eleusine</i> <i>coracana</i> (L.) Gaertn.] using bark of <i>Gethi</i> (<i>Boehmeria</i> <i>regulosa</i> Wedd.) tree

Abstract

Finger millet [<i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Eleusine coracana </i>(L<i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">.</i>) Gaertn.], an important coarse cereal of Indian Subcontinent and Africa, is devoid of gluten and, therefore, lacks the bread making quality of wheat. A traditional method of imparting finger millet the bread making quality of wheat using bark of a tree locally known as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Gethi</i> (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Boehmeria regulosa </i>Wedd<i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">.</i>) and, the physical properties and nutritional composition of the bark<i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal"> </i>are reported in the present study. The method has been found effective with other coarse cereals such as maize, sorghum, pearl millet and barnyard millet, and pseudo-cereals, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">viz</i>. buckwheat and amaranth. Preliminary phytochemical analysis of the bark showed presence of appreciable amounts of phenolics, flavonoids and antioxidant activity, besides high viscosity. The bark is also rich in iron and zinc, signifying its potential efficacy in nutritional fortification of coarse cereals and pseudo-cereals apart from improving their bread making quality.