Potency of mung bean with different soaking times as protein source for breastfeeding women in Indonesia

This research studied the changes of protein and amino acid profile in mung bean during soaking. The whole mung bean seeds were subjected to five different treatments of soaking, without soaking (control), with soaking for 2, 4, 6 and 8 hrs. Crude protein content, soluble protein content and amino acid profile of the mung beans were analyzed. The results showed that crude protein content of mung bean without soaking (26.64% db) was higher than those of soaked mung beans (in a range of 23.52-25.33%). The results indicated that the crude protein contents were significantly different among the different soaking times. The soluble protein contents tend to increase during soaking treatment and be optimal on 6 hrs soaking time. The amino acids profile showed a trend increasing up to 6 hrs soaking time. Based on these results, the suggested soaking time was 6 hrs. Those findings of amino acids profile, crude protein and soluble protein contents revealed that the soaked mung beans were potential as a good and inexpensive source of protein for breastfeeding women, especially in combination with rice which is the staple food of most of the Indonesian people