Effect of steaming conditions on the changes in physical properties of stored faba bean seeds

The effect of soaking and steaming on hardness and crushing resistance of faba bean seeds, as weil as their variability and development of hard-to-cook (HTC) defect during storage of raw and treated seeds were studied. The greatest resistance of the seed coat (669.2 N) was found for raw seeds, less for dried soaked seeds (549.4-593.3N) and the least for dried steamed seeds (4024-437.5 N). Also the resistance of the cotyledons of dried steamed seeds (338.0- 366.1 N) was much lower compared to raw (630 N) and dried soaked (385.8-460.0 N) seeds. Crackability of steamed seeds brought about 10% lower hulling efficiency and increased percentage of tiny fraction. No regular changes in the mechanical properties of stored faba bean seeds were observed. Cookability of stored raw seeds exceeded that of stored dry seeds steamed under extreme conditions (25 min, pressure steamer) and dry soaked seeds. The content of phytic phosphorus in faba bean seeds was high (3.42-3.83 mg/g dm), and neither the way of steaming nor time of storage affected these values. Phenolics content ranged from 0.133 to 0.368% d.m. and was the lowest in soaked or steamed seeds with the highest water content and with low cookability, yet, it did not change considerably during storage of seeds.