| Abstrakt: |
Nettle leaf powder is an excellent source of nutritional compounds (proteins, minerals, fibers, carbohydrates) and biologically active compounds: terpenoids, carotenoids, fatty acids, various polyphenolic compounds, essential amino acids, chlorophyll, vitamins, etc., essential for the health of the human body. Therefore, nettle powder could be used as a nutritional supplement. The nutritional quality of the nettle powder can be influenced by the drying technique of the nettle leaves, respectively by the water content of the final product. This study aims to evaluate the nutritional content of nettle powder obtained by drying nettle leaves through three drying processes. Basically, the variation of moisture, ash, protein, fiber and carbohydrate content of nettle leaf powder obtained by drying was observed in case of fresh leaves of wild nettle (Urtica dioica L.) from the spontaneous flora, using three drying methods: shade drying (SHD), sun drying (SD) and oven drying (OD). The obtained results show that the nettle leaf powder obtained under the conditions of this experiment contains important amounts of nutritional compounds. This research provides evidence that nettle leaf powder contains greatly increased amounts of nutrients compared to fresh leaves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
