Dietary fibre in legumes: effect of processing

Analuzing lentils and beans confirms that legumes are good source of dietary fibre which varies from 18 and 20% of dry weight for beans and fava beans, and between 11 and 12% for chickpeas and lentils. A variation of 1:1 in beans to 2:1 ratio in other legumes was observed. Arabinose was found to be the main fibre component in beans and chickpeas while for fava beans and lentils it was glucose. An increase in total dietary fibre was observed in all samples of home cooking, with an increase in the soluble fraction of dietary fibre.