Description of pumpkin flour and methods of preparation, nutritional value and vitamin and mineral composition. Benefits and harm to the body, use in cooking and home cosmetics.
Pumpkin flour is a food product that, in most cases, is made by grinding the seeds of a herbaceous plant, which is called a vegetable berry in botany, or simply a vegetable in the people. The smell is characteristic, bitter-nutty; color - from light to gray-green; the structure is small, the size of the grains is up to 0.2 mm; texture - free flowing, the presence of lumps is not allowed. It is used for food and medicinal purposes.
How is pumpkin flour made?
In the manufacture of the product on an industrial scale, the fruits of a special type of pumpkin are used - with seeds without a shell, covered with mucus. Mostly an annual plant called Cucurbita. This crop is grown only in warm climates, so China, Pakistan, India and Indonesia are the main exporters of seeds. The seeds of vegetables planted in Russia and Ukraine are also suitable for grinding, only from them you can get small quantities of flour - for home use. It is too troublesome to remove the husk.
First, the vegetables are dissected, the seeds are cleaned, washed, removing mucus, and dried with a directed stream of warm air.
For the production of flour from pumpkin seeds, dry raw materials are poured into a hopper, from where they are fed to an electric mill and ground to the desired consistency, sifting several times and separating the substandard.
There are many recipes for pumpkin seed flour in the food industry, depending on the application. If the goal is to use seasonings as a flavoring or thickener, then the starting material is the grains covered with a thin skin. They are fried for up to 10 minutes with table salt, proportions by weight - 94: 6, at a temperature of 100 ° C. No oil is added, it is melted when heated. When the intermediate raw material acquires a rich yellow-brown color, it is laid out in one layer on sheets, placed on racks and cooled, providing free air access. Then grind to a powdery state. The color of such a product will be yellowish-brown, the taste is pronounced nutty. If the goal is to be used as an additive for confectionery, they are fried not with salt, but with sugar.
Another manufacturing method: washed and dried seeds are crushed to grains of 2-4 mm in size, treated with an aqueous solution of sugar or salt, dried at 65 ° C, fried at 170-180 ° C and ground to a size of 0.4-0.5 mm …
In the manufacture of pumpkin flour for medicinal purposes, as a dietary supplement, it is supplemented with pulp powder. The peel is removed from the vegetable berry and the seeds are removed, then the pulp is squeezed out on a press, dried and ground into powder.
How to make pumpkin flour at home
- The seeds of the new crop, without damage, are dried in the oven at 40 ° C or lightly fried in a dry frying pan, stirring constantly.
- If the shells are rough, it is best to remove them. Intermediate raw materials are dried again in the oven or outdoors. The weight, in comparison with the initial one, should decrease by 2, 5-3 times.
- You can use a coffee grinder, food processor, blender, or meat grinder to grind. The flour is sieved several times to oxygenate and create a free-flowing texture. Large grains, if there are a lot of them, are crushed again, when there are few, they are disposed of.
- The household appliance is turned on at low speed or the "Ripple" mode is used. They pressed the button, released it, and repeated the press again. This is done to prevent the powder from sticking together. When grinding, oil is released, and if you do not take a break, the output will be an unappetizing sticky mass, which will have to be dried again.
- Pumpkin flour baked goods are tastier if you add sweet pulp powder to the baked goods. The vegetable is peeled, seeds removed and cut into pieces. They are crushed using any suitable household appliance, squeezed out and left to dry in an oven or electric dryer. When the pieces are brittle to the touch, grind them.
There is another recipe for making pumpkin flour from the pulp yourself. Pieces of vegetable with peeled skin are boiled and then rubbed through a sieve. Spread out in a thin layer on a baking sheet, dry at the same temperature as seeds or pulp, and then grind. In appearance, such a product resembles raw pulp flour, but the benefits from it are much less. After heat treatment, the vitamin composition is depleted. But when combined with water, you can make mashed potatoes, which are then added to dishes to improve the taste.
Composition and calorie content of pumpkin flour
Pictured is pumpkin flour
The energy value of the product depends on the type of raw materials and the method of preparation. Since grinding from pulp is rarely used, the following are parameters for a product made from seeds.
The calorie content of pumpkin flour is 286-305 kcal per 100 g, of which:
- Protein - 40 g;
- Fat - 10 g;
- Carbohydrates - 9 g;
- Dietary fiber - 6 g;
- Water - 5.23 g.
Nutritional value of pumpkin pulp flour - 200 kcal, the percentage of the main indicators:
- Proteins - 12, 61%;
- Fats - 5, 80%;
- Carbohydrates - 55, 15%;
- Dietary fiber - not less than 25.7-26%.
Vitamins per 100 g:
- Vitamin A - 1 μg;
- Vitamin B1, thiamine - 0.273 mg;
- Vitamin B2, riboflavin - 0.153 mg;
- Vitamin B4, choline - 63 mg;
- Vitamin B5, pantothenic acid - 0.75 mg;
- Vitamin B6, pyridoxine - 0.143 mg;
- Vitamin B9, folate - 58 mcg;
- Vitamin C, ascorbic acid - 1.9 mg;
- Vitamin E, tocopherol - 37.75 mg;
- Vitamin K, phylloquinone - 7.3 mcg;
- Vitamin PP - 4.987 mg.
Macronutrients per 100 g:
- Potassium, K - 809 mg;
- Calcium, Ca - 46 mg;
- Magnesium, Mg - 592 mg;
- Sodium, Na - 7 mg;
- Phosphorus, P - 1233 mg.
Microelements per 100 g:
- Iron, Fe - 8.82 mg;
- Manganese, Mn - 4.543 mg;
- Copper, Cu - 1343 μg;
- Selenium, Se - 9.4 μg;
- Zinc, Zn - 7.81 mg.
Carbohydrates per 100 g:
- Starch and dextrins - 1.47 g;
- Mono- and disaccharides (sugars) - 1.4 g;
- Glucose (dextrose) - 0.13 g;
- Sucrose - 1.13 g;
- Fructose - 0.15 g.
The benefits and harms of pumpkin flour for the human body largely depend on compounds that normalize vital processes. These include amino acids, without which metabolic processes and tissue regeneration are impossible, and fats, which are responsible for protein-lipid metabolism.
In the composition of pumpkin flour there are 10 types of essential amino acids with a predominance of valine, phenylalanine and leucine, nonessential - 8 types, most of all glutamic acid and glycine.
Glutamic acid removes and neutralizes ammonia and stimulates the synthesis of norepinephrine and serotonin. In 100 g of a bulk product, half the daily requirement of this substance. Glycine is no less important for humans. It also improves the emotional state, suppresses anxiety, improves falling asleep and prevents the development of central nervous system disorders.
Fats per 100 g:
- Saturated - 1.85 m;
- Monounsaturated - 3.02 g;
- Polyunsaturated - 5.05 g.
If these compounds are not enough, early aging begins, and age-related changes develop rapidly. But with an excess, a fat layer begins to form and cellulite appears, the "orange peel" that women are so afraid of. Therefore, do not get carried away with powdered pumpkin seeds.
The benefits of pumpkin flour
The product has a healing effect. Indian healers with his help relieved their fellow tribesmen from many diseases, the symptoms of which were weakness and lethargy, and returned the desire to live to the sick.
The benefits of pumpkin meal for the human body were confirmed by studies that began at the end of the 18th century:
- Strengthens bone tissue, prevents the development of osteoporosis. The calcium + zinc complex allows you to maintain the density of the skeleton in the elderly, against the background of hormonal attenuation.
- It has anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties.
- Dissolves uric acid salts deposited in large and small joints, stops the accumulation of calculi in the kidneys and gallbladder ducts.
- Normalizes the hormonal system and increases libido in men.
- It has a pronounced choleretic effect, accelerates metabolic processes in the intestine and at the cellular level.
- Against the background of an active lifestyle, it helps to quickly lose weight and avoid the deposition of body fat.
- Improves mood due to tryptophan, a natural antidepressant, speeds up falling asleep and helps to get rid of nightmares.
- It has an antioxidant effect, slows down the development of prostate and rectal cancer.
But the benefits of pumpkin flour are not limited to the above properties. In folk medicine, it is used to destroy and remove helminths from the body, and potions are made to lower cholesterol levels. In addition, the properties are noted to quickly suppress the release of histamine in direct contact with allergens and lower blood pressure.
