Determination of nutritional and chemical composition of some edible wild plants used in herby cheese

Same as in many parts of the world, many edible weeds belonging to different families that have not been cultured in Turkey are traditionally used in the making of many foods. In this study, minerals and nutrients of six edible wild plant species belonging to the Liliaceae family, which are currently used in the production of herby cheese in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey, were determined. The determination of these macro- and micro-minerals was performed on ICP-AES and UV Visible spectrophotometers. As a result of the study, major differences were discovered between these plant species in terms of the mineral content (Na, Mg, K, s, Ca, P, Fr, Mn, Cu, Zn, Cr, and Co) and nutrient properties (total ash, crude fibre, pH, N, and crude protein). Except for the Allium schoenoprasum species, all plant samples were found to be rich in many important minerals, such as Fe, Cu, Ca, K, Mn, and Zn, which are known to be vital for human health. The concentrations of these minerals and a few heavy metals in plant samples were found in the following ranges: 17.25 - 25.47 mg kg-1 for copper, 18.45 - 34.14 mg kg-1 for zinc, 33.42 - 98.42 mg kg-1 for manganese, 0.12 - 0.54 mg kg-1 for chromium, 0.31 - 1.61 mg kg-1 cobalt. Many significant correlations were found among the parameters analysed. The study presents essential results on the availability of some vital minerals that could be useful or harmful to consumers, in order to provide dietary information for designing value-added foods.