Evaluation of Sensory and Nutritional Quality of Leucas aspera Leaf Powder Incorporated Millet based Ready to Eat (RTE) Snack

Since last few years, there was a drastic change in the food habits and cooking methods. Ready to eat (RTE) products usage was highly increased in the last five years due their convenience, price, attractiveness, taste, texture and appearance. Consumption of convenience foods with health benefits attracted many sections of the population. Jowar is a millet with potential health benefits. Leucas aspera is a traditional green leafy vegetable available in entire India. Instead of regular murukku, jowar murukku with addition of an underutilised green leafy vegetable (Leucas aspera) adds variety, improve palatability and health. Leucas aspera leaf powder incorporated jowar murukku was developed and evaluated for sensory and nutritional qualities.

The work was done in the year 2020-2021. The leaves are collected from the Nalgonda district of Telangana state. After the preliminary processing, the dried leaf powder is added to jowar murukku in different formulations. The best selected formulation is analysed for both sensory and nutritional quality.

The results of the study found that addition of leaf powder improved the sensory quality, protein, crude fiber, vitamin, mineral and antioxidant content of the jowar murukku than the control sample.