Quinoa Saponins: Concentration and Composition Analysis

Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd., Chenopodiaceae) is a pseudocereal native to the Andes with high nutritional value, tolerance to drought and frost, and ability to grow in poor soils at high elevations (Ward 2000). The quinoa grain a traditional food source of the Andes, is rich in essential amino acids. Using the plant as an alternative forage in low rainfall zones has been suggested by Espíndola and Rodríguez (1984). The nutritive differences of sweet and sour quinoa forage cultivars as a function of plant age, have been reported by Capelo (1983), with dry forage yields ranging from 4 to 14 tonnes (t)/ha. The nutritional value of quinoa is higher than all other cereals. Crude protein content ranges from 10