Effects of refrigeration on biochemical, digestibility, and technological parameters of carioca beans during storage.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of grain moisture, temperature, and storage time on biochemical, digestibility, and technological parameters of carioca beans. The grains were stored at 16.7% and 13.8% of moisture at 12, 20, 28, and 36°C for 240 days. It was observed that a reduction in the storage temperature maintained the germination and vigor of the grains. The temperature of 36°C causes between 3.81% and 4.52% reduction in weight of a thousand grains and significant darkening. Carioca beans stored at 36°C exhibited hard-to-cook (HTC) defect at 80 days and increases in hardness after 240 days. The best digestibility indexes of carioca beans were obtained with refrigerated storage. The refrigerated storage (12°C) provides the best preservability of the grains throughout the storage, verified by the parameters biochemical, digestibility, and technological parameters. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Carioca beans are among the most consumed beans in Brazil and their quality for consumption is directly influenced by storage conditions that alter color, nutritional value, bioactive, and cooking properties. Thus, this study seeks to present a practical and viable solution for stockist of bean grains, so that they can store these grains for long periods, maintaining the quality standards for commercialization. In addition, this technology allows the stockist to identify the best time for commercialization of the carioca beans, which has high added value.