Argentinian pistachio oil and flour: a potential novel approach of pistachio nut utilization

Abstract

In order to searching a potential novel approach to pistachio utilization, thechemical and nutritional quality of oil and flour from natural, roasted, andsalted roasted pistachios from Argentinian cultivars were evaluated. Thepistachio oil has high contents of oleic and linoleic acid (53.5-55.3, 29-31.4 relative abundance, respectively), tocopherols (896?916 μg/g oil),carotenoids (48?56 μg/g oil) and chlorophylls (41-70 μg/g oil), being a goodsource for commercial edible oil production. The processing conditions didnot affect significantly the fatty acid distribution and minor components ofpistachio oil samples. The roasting process not diminish total phenolic (TP)and flavonoids (FL) content significantly compared to natural pistachio flour(NPF), even so reduced the DPPH antioxidant capacity (approximately20 %) in the roasted pistachio flour (RPF). Furthermore, salted roastedpistachio flour (SRPF) showed a slight and significant decrease on TP andFL content in relation to the others samples. The phenolic profile of pistachioflours were evaluated by LC-ESI-QTOF-MS. The major compounds were(+)-catechin (38?65.6 μg/g PF d.w.), gallic acid (23-36 μg/g PF d.w.) andcyanidin-3-O-galactoside (21-23 μg/g PF d.w.). The treatments havedifferent effects on the phenolics constituents of pistachio flour. Roastingcaused a significant reduction of some phenolics, gallic acid and (+)-catechin,and increased others, naringenin and luteolin. Otherwise, salting and roastingof pistachio increased levels of gallic acid and naringenin. These resultssuggest that Argentinian pistachio oil and flour could be considered asingredients into applications that enhance human health.