Comparison of physicochemical and antioxidant properties of raw and roasted cashew

Frying and roasting are two common heat processes to improve sensory properties of nuts and subsequently change other properties including physicochemical, nutritional and antioxidant. According to the nutritional value of nuts, it seems necessary to investigate these changes. In this study some physicochemical, nutritional and antioxidant properties of raw and roasted cashew kernels including moisture and volatiles, total ash, total fat, protein, crude fiber, carbohydrate, peroxide value, energy, fatty acid profile, measurement of total antioxidant power and some mineral elements such as potassium, sodium, iron and calcium were investigated. Obtained results based on dry matter shows that raw samples contain higher amount of fat (43.89±0.04 g/100g), moisture and volatiles (1.64±0.01 g/100g) and fiber (3.22±0.08 g/100g), while roasted samples had higher amount of total ash (mineral elements) (2.76±0.07g/100g), carbohydrate (31.44±0.01 g/100g), peroxide (0.912±0.07 mEq. O2/kg of oil) and energy (597.29±0.009 Kcal/g). Antioxidant activity was investigated with DPPH and FRAP tests, both tests confirm each other and showed higher antioxidant activity of the roasted samples (IC50= 3388.6 mg L-1 and CFe2+= 0.15 mM). Based on the obtained results it can be said that, roasted cashew can be recommended as a snack with high nutritional value and low fat.