Comparison of the effectiveness of different traditional soaking processes on the in vitro digestibility of taro (Colocasia esculenta L. SCHOTT) flour

A traditional process used by farmers in Chad consists in soaking slices of taro (Colocasia esculenta L. SCHOTT) in tamarind infusion, or in corn solution or in water over a 24-hour period to reduce the acridity of taro and fa- cilitate cooking. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of traditional soaking on the in vitro digestibility of taro flour using or not using an α-amylase enzyme. The digestion without the enzyme has shown that the soaking processes improve the digestibility of taro flour (from 39.30% for the control sample to 75.11% (after tamarind infusion) and 78.67% (treatment with water) after 24 hours of soaking). Soaking over a 6-hour period and pref- erentially in tamarind infusion or in corn solution obtains highly digestible flour (around 95% of digestibility rate after 3 hours of enzymatic digestion)