Traditional fermented rice beverage enriched with zinc, calcium and iron

Abstract

Fermentation is a processing method passed on to us by our ancestors. Today, their benefit goes beyond preservation with the knowledge of probiotic organisms offering benefits to our gut health and various other therapeutic benefits. Cereal fermentation creates conditions that are optimal for degradation of anti-nutrients, otherwise complexed with micronutrients. The overall objective of the study was to develop a fermented rice beverage based on a traditional South Indian practice, enriched with micronutrients zinc, calcium and iron. The product incorporated ingredients such as sesame seeds rich in micronutrients iron, calcium and zinc and pumpkin seeds as a source of zinc and calcium along with red rice. The beverage was prepared by fermenting red rice with water and curd as a starter culture for 12 h as the control (T0). Roasted pumpkin seed and sesame seed powders were incorporated in formulations as variation 1 (5%), variation 2 (10%), variation 3 (15%). It was observed in sensory evaluation that V1 was the best accepted variation. Physiochemical analysis of V1 reveals pH 4.16±0.005 and acidity 0.1±0.01%. Macronutrient estimation showed 8±0.01 g/100 mL carbohydrate and 0.883±0.00 g/100 mL protein in V1. Micronutrient content of enriched rice biotic beverage was 0.235±0.001 mg/100 mL zinc, 0.375±0.001 mg/100 mL iron and 20±0.1 mg/100 mL calcium. Micronutrient content was significantly increased (p<0.05) in V1 when compared to the standard (T0). Isolation of bacteria showed presence of potential probiotics, 12x10⁶ CFU/mL in T0 and 31x10⁶ CFU/mL in V1. Bacteria were confirmed to be rod shaped and gram positive in character. The study concluded that an acceptable enriched rice biotic beverage was developed.