Physicochemical and Organoleptic Characterization of Flours and Some Food Products Processed from Ten Maize Varieties (Zea mays) Cultivated in Côte d’Ivoire

Objective: The aim of this work was to determine the processing aptitude of maize varieties into food products to be promoted in Côte d’Ivoire.

Methodology: Three dishes have been developed from ten maize varieties (MAAN16, PGBR, PGB18, AAA3, KF18, CJB, KO/Na4, KO/Na3, KO/Wa6, and EV99MRP). The sensory criteria used for the acceptability of the food products were the taste, the flavor and the color. Prior to the preparation of maize flour based food, like cakes, cooked flour paste (tôh) and semolina porridge, the biochemical and physicochemical characteristics (moisture content, fat, protein content, ash content, carbohydrate, total sugar and reducers and pH) and functional characteristics of maize were determined. Hedonic and descriptive tests were performed with 30 and 15 panelists respectively.

Results: The maize varieties presented good nutritional and technological potentialities because of their high content in essential compounds likely to influence the organoleptic characteristics of the processed food. The lowest starch content was MAAN16 with 38.58 ± 0.45% dw and the highest was CJB with 71.85 ± 0.56% dw. The lowest protein content is 5.56 ± 0.17% dw at CJB and the highest protein content is 13.66 ± 0.33% dw in KO/Na3. The lowest fat content is 3.87 ± 0.12% dw (in KO/Na4) and the highest is 12.56 ± 0.50% dw (in MAAN16); the lowest carbohydrate level is 63.27 ± 0.01% dw (in MAAN16) and the highest is 74.92± 0.03% dw (in CJB). The acceptability of the cakes, the cooked flour paste and the semolina porridge depended on the maize variety. Foods prepared from maize varieties CJB, KO/Na3, KO/Wa6, MAAN16 and PGBR were the most appreciated by tasters.