Authors:
Grover Castaneta, Aleyda Huayhua-LLusco, Milenka Iturralde, Daniela Miranda-Flores, Leslie Tejeda, Patricia Mollinedo, Cristal Taboada, J. Mauricio Penarrieta
Volume 30, Issue 1;
Pages: 20-27; 2024
ISSN: 2069-0053 (print), Agroprint;
ISSN (online): 2068-9551
Lupinus mutabilis Sweet grains, commonly known as Tarwi in the Bolivian highlands, are garnering increased attention as an emerging food source due to their elevated protein and fat content. Originally, these grains possess a bitter taste attributed to the presence of quinolizidine-type alkaloids, necessitating a debittering process. In this investigation, we assessed the most abundant alkaloids (sparteine and lupanine) in six Tarwi cultivars both before and after debittering, employing water and a sodium bicarbonate solution. The findings reveal that the debittering process effectively reduces alkaloid concentrations to permissible levels and may even confer health benefits. Additionally, a proximal analysis was carried and swift, straightforward qualitative method was devised to estimate quinolizidine alkaloids through the formation of an orange complex resulting from iodide-alkaloid ion interaction, that could be applied by the indigenous communities that produce this food.