NUTRITIONAL AND MICROBIOLOGICAL STUDY OF ANISHI: A TRADITIONAL FERMENTED FOOD PRODUCT OF NAGALAND, INDIA

Fermentation is food processing technology which improves the product quality of the raw material(s) due to the enzymatic action of various microorganisms. Indigenous fermented foods in Nagaland form a very integral part of the diet. Anishi is a popular fermented food product prepared from Colocasia leaves (Colocasia esculenta L. Schlott.). This study was done to analyze the nutritional value of anishi in comparison to its raw material and to determine the dominant microorganisms present in the product. Anishi was found to be nutritionally better in comparison to its raw material. Anishi had high levels of protein (34.19 g/100 g), crude fibre (12.26 g/100 g) and found to have high antioxidant activity. Bacillus species was found to be the most dominant microorganism in the product, which was identified as Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus licheniformis based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Another bacterium isolated belonged to Enterococcus faecalis. The results of this study thus suggest that anishi can be consumed not only as food but also as a curative, due to its high nutritional value and antioxidant capacity