Investigation of bioactive compounds, minerals and sensory evaluation of watercress, basil and radish microgreens

Microgreens are small and edible vegetables, smaller than greens and bigger than sprouts. Microgreens, as a rich source of nutrients and antioxidants, have gained a special place in the healthy nutrition of humans in recent years. These plants grow as small, compact greens, reaching a small height in just a few days, but despite their small size, they contain the richest sources of nutrients. In this project, the content of macro and micro elements and compounds of antioxidants in basil, watercress and radish microgreens have been investigated. The concentrations of nitrogen, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium and sodium in watercress microgreens were 4.81, 0.98, 5.93, 0.52, 0.95 and 1.95%, respectively. The amount of chlorophyll in watercress microgreen was 1.12 mg/g, which was significantly higher than basil microgreen (0.02 mg/g) and radish (0.87 mg/g). The highest amount of antioxidant and phenolic compounds were respectively (75.35% and 73.45mg/100g) in shahi microgreen, which was significantly higher than basil microgreen (69.66% and 69.02mg/100g) and radish (65.37 % and 69.45 mg/ 100 g) were more. The highest amount of vitamin C was found in watercress microgreens (65.67 mg/100 g) compared to basil (59.56 mg/100 g) and radish (55.46 mg/100 g).