Influence of Processing Methods on Phytochemical Composition of Different Varieties of Beans (Phaseolus vulgaris)

ABSTRACTBeans (Phaseolus vulgaris), also known as the common beans, are broadly cultivated in temperate and semitropical regions. P. vulgaris contain different varieties, such as kidney beans, black beans, navy beans, pinto beans, and Great Northern beans. This legume is an excellent source of nutrients, including protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, and phytochemical compounds. The phytochemicals in beans comprise bioactive substances such as phenolic compounds, phytosterols, and oligosaccharides. These bioactive substances exhibit health and therapeutic benefits including antioxidant, cholesterol-lowering, anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, and anti-inflammatory potential. However, there is another category of essential phytochemicals, the antinutrients (e.g. enzyme inhibitors, phytic acids/phytates, saponins, and lectins), that negatively influence nutrient digestion and absorption. This review aims to describe the nutritional and phytochemical compounds of beans as well as the impact of different processing methods on bean phytochemicals, including soaking, extrusion, germination, roasting, steaming, autoclaving, boiling, cooking, microwaving, high-pressure processing, ultrasound, and pulsed electric field. In addition, the differences regarding volatile compounds; the impacts of storage on phytochemicals in beans; their bioaccessibility and digestibility; and the potential health benefits of bean consumption are introduced and evaluated.KEYWORDS: Beansphytochemical compositionphenolic compoundantinutritional compoundprocessingbioavailability AcknowledgmentsWe would like to thank The Future Food Hallmark Research Initiative at the University of Melbourne, Australia. We would like to thank researchers of the Dr. Hafiz Suleria group from the School of Agriculture, Faculty of Science, the University of Melbourne for their incredible support.Disclosure statementThe authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.Additional informationFundingThis research was funded by Ezy Chef Pty Ltd, Australia and supported by the AusIndustry Entrepreneurs' Programme "Innovation Connections Grant (TCG00175)". Dr. Hafiz Suleria is the recipient of an Australian Research Council—Discovery Early Career Award (ARC-DECRA—DE220100055) funded by the Australian Government. This research was also funded by the University of Melbourne under the McKenzie Fellowship Scheme (Grant No. UoM-18/21), the Future Food Hallmark Research Initiative Funds (Grant No. UoM-21/23), and Collaborative Research Development Grant (Grant No. UoM-21/23) funded by the Faculty of Science, the University of Melbourne, Australia.