Sains Malaysiana 55(4)(2026): 658-668

http://doi.org/10.17576/jsm-2026-5504-06

 

The Effect of Nixtamalization on Physical Properties and Antinutritional Content of White Sorghum Flour from Garut, Indonesia

(Kesan Nixtamalisasi terhadap Sifat Fizikal dan Kandungan Anti Nutrisi Tepung Sorgum Putih dari Garut, Indonesia)

 

DONOWATI TJOKROKUSUMO¹, IKA MULAWATI PURWANTI NOVIANA¹, DITA KRISTANTI¹, DIAH IKASARI^1,*, NILA KUSUMAWATY¹, ERMA MARYANA², ADE SAEPUDIN³ & UMI PURWANDARI⁴ 

 

¹Research Center for Food Technology and Processing, National Research and Innovation Agency of Republic Indonesia, Yogyakarta, Indonesia 55861

²Directorate for Laboratory Management, Research Facilities, and Science and Technology Park, National Research and Innovation Agency of Republic Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia 10340

³Research Center for Behavioral and Circular Economics, National Research and Innovation Agency of Republic Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia 12710

⁴Food Technology Departement, University of Trunojoyo Madura, Indonesia 69162

 

Received: 17 October 2025/Accepted: 1 April 2026

 

Abstract

Sorghum grain originating from Garut, Indonesia, has great potential to be developed as an alternative staple food, as its protein and carbohydrate content are comparable to those of rice. However, the utilization of sorghum in food products remains limited due to its undesirable physical characteristics and the presence of anti-nutrient compounds. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of nixtamalization on physical characteristics and anti-nutrient content of sorghum grain. A randomized block design was employed with two factors: Ca (OH)₂ concentration (0.5%, 1.0% and 1.5% w/w) and cooking time (10 min, 20 min and 30 min). The results showed that nixtamalization significantly affected the physical characteristics of sorghum flour. The pasting profile exhibited variations in peak viscosity (1173.5 - 1949.25 cP), trough viscosity (866 - 1526 cP), final viscosity (1665 - 3774 cP), setback viscosity (220.5- 596 cP), pasting temperature (80.42-84.35 °C) and peak time (4.83-5.4 min). Furthermore, nixtamalization effectively reduced the levels of anti-nutritional factors, with phytic acid decreasing from 14.4 to 11.6 mg/g and tannin content decreasing from 2.4 to 0.0 mg/100 g. These findings indicate that the nixtamalization process improves the functional and decrease anti-nutritional properties of sorghum flour, enhancing its suitability for application in food product development and diversification. Therefore, nixtamalized sorghum flour could serve as a promising ingredient to support food security and promote the utilization of local crops in Indonesia.

Keywords: Anti-nutritional content; nixtamalization; physical properties; white sorghum flour

Abstrak

Sorgum dari Garut, Indonesia, mempunyai potensi besar untuk dibangunkan sebagai bahan makanan ruji alternatif kerana kandungan protein dan karbohidratnya setanding dengan beras. Walau bagaimanapun, penggunaan sorgum dalam produk makanan masih terhad disebabkan ciri fizikalnya yang kurang sesuai dan kehadiran sebatian anti-nutrien. Kajian ini bertujuan untuk menilai kesan proses nixtamalisasi ke atas ciri fizikal dan kandungan anti-nutrien biji sorgum. Reka bentuk rawak blok digunakan dengan dua faktor, iaitu kepekatan Ca(OH)₂ (0.5%, 1.0% dan 1.5% b/b) dan masa memasak (10 min, 20 min dan 30 min). Hasil kajian menunjukkan bahawa nixtamalisasi mempengaruhi ciri fizikal tepung sorgum dengan signifikan. Profil pelekat menunjukkan variasi dalam kelikatan puncak (1173.5-1949.25 cP), kelikatan lembah (866-1526 cP), kelikatan akhir (1665-3774 cP), kelikatan set semula (220.5-596 cP), suhu pelekat (80.42-84.35 °C) dan masa ke puncak (4.83-5.4 minit). Selain itu, nixtamalisasi terbukti berkesan mengurangkan kandungan sebatian anti-nutrien dengan kandungan asid fitik menurun dari 14.4 kepada 11.6 mg/g dan tanin dari 2.4 kepada 0.0 mg/100 g. Ini menunjukkan bahawa proses nixtamalisasi dapat meningkatkan sifat kefungsian serta mengurangkan kandungan anti-nutrien tepung sorgum, seterusnya meningkatkan kesesuaiannya untuk digunakan dalam pembangunan dan kepelbagaian produk makanan. Oleh itu, tepung sorgum hasil nixtamalisasi berpotensi menjadi bahan makanan yang menjanjikan untuk menyokong ketahanan makanan dan penggunaan tanaman tempatan di Indonesia.

Kata kunci: Kandungan anti nutrisi; nixtamalisasi; sifat fizikal; tepung sorgum putih

 

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*Corresponding author; email: ikadiah263@gmail.com