Abstract

The effect of addition of lime and NaCl during the natural fermentation of castor bean seeds was studied in this research. Fermentation was carried out for four days at room temperature (29°C). The pH and temperature of the fermenting castor bean seeds were monitored and found to increase steadily. The sample with 3% NaCl attained the highest temperature of (31.50°C) on the fourth day of fermentation followed by the sample without any lime (31.00°C). There was an increase in the crude protein (13.88 to 17.90%) and crude fat (48.76 to 57.00%) contents of the fermenting castor bean seeds. The crude protein content was highest in the sample containing no lime (17.90%), followed by the samples with 1% lime (17.85%) and 3% NaCl (17.85%) on the fourth day of fermentation. The fermentation process however reduced the soluble carbohydrate content of the castor bean seeds. The most preferred level of lime inclusion was found to be in the range of 1 to 3%. At this level the quality was close to the sample with 3% NaCl addition.

Key words: Fermentation, Ogiri, lime, NaCl, castor bean.