Chemical composition of pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima D.) flesh flours used for food

Abstract

Pumpkin flours (Cucurbita maxima D.) are alternative horticultural products and functional properties of food components. The main aim of this study was to investigate the quality parameters of the pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima D.) fruit flesh flours of different cultivars: ‘Justynka F1’, ‘Karowita’ and ‘Amazonka’. Standard methods were applied to determine dry matter, crude fibre, crude protein, crude fat, crude ash, the neutral dietary fiber (NDF), modified acid-detergent fibre (MADF), water-soluble carbohydrates (WSC) and carotenoids (β-carotene, lutein + zeaxanthin, lycopene). The pumpkin fruit flours of ‘Justynka F1’ accumulated significantly highest content of dry matter, crude ash, crude fiber, water-soluble carbohydrates (WSC). The highest amount of crude protein, crude fat and lutein + zeaxanthin were in the pumpkin fruit flours of ‘Karowita’. The maximum of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and modified acid-detergent fibre (MADF) was accumulated in ‘Amazonka’ pumpkin flour, respectively, 21.37, 20.13% DM, so that the flour of this pumpkin variety is most suitable to enrich food with dietary fiber.