Effect of Processing on the Nutrients and Anti-nutrients Composition of Faba-Bean

Faba bean is an excellent source of protein, carbohydrates, fiber, and vitamins which could serve as a vital nutrient source in ensuring food security. The bean has the potential to be used as a vegetable protein source in different products thus, helping to meet the ever-changing consumer dietary need. The nutrient composition of Faba bean may depend on variety, however, the bioavailability of the nutrients in the bean is reduced by the presence of inherent antinutritional factors such as trypsin inhibitors, hemagglutinin, phytic acid, vicine, convicine and tannins. For the transformation of the bean into food, processing methods including soaking, dehulling, ordinary cooking, microwave cooking, irradiation, extrusion, and autoclaving are used. This chapter discusses the effect of different processing methods on the nutrient and antinutrient composition of Faba bean. A good understanding of the impact of processing on the nutrients and anti-nutrients could improve the use of Faba bean for human consumption to achieve desirable health benefits. Future studies on the optimization of these processing conditions to maximize the reduction in anti-nutrients and minimize nutrient loss are required, to further improve the utilization of this leguminous crop.