Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture J Sci Food Agric 85:2314–2320 (2005)

DOI: 10.1002/jsfa.2261

Effect of different blanching times on

antioxidant properties in selected
cruciferous vegetables
Ismail Amin∗ and Wee Yee Lee
Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang,
Selangor, Malaysia

Abstract: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of different blanching times on the antioxidant properties
(antioxidant and free radical scavenging activities) and phenolic content of selected cruciferous vegetables.
The study revealed that a 10-min blanching time had a significant effect (p < 0.05) on the antioxidant
properties and phenolic content of all the vegetables except for cabbage and mustard cabbage. The
loss of antioxidant activity was highest in Chinese cabbage (40%) after 15 min of blanching, followed
by cabbage (27%), Chinese white cabbage (19%), mustard cabbage (9%) and red cabbage (4%). Red
cabbage had lost a total of 40% scavenging activity after 15 min of blanching followed by Chinese cabbage
(38%), cabbage (36%), mustard cabbage (23%) and Chinese white cabbage (11%). Only Chinese cabbage
showed an increase (p < 0.05) in total phenolic content after 15 min of blanching compared with other
vegetables. Minimal heat treatment through blanching process is recommended to prevent the major loss
of antioxidant properties and phenolic content in selected cruciferous vegetables.
 2005 Society of Chemical Industry

Keywords: cruciferous vegetables; blanching; antioxidant properties; phenolic content

INTRODUCTION decrease in total antioxidant activity in fresh-cut

Vegetables act as a source of natural antioxidants; they spinach.
help in defense mechanisms by removing potentially The antioxidant status of fruits and vegetables is
damaging free radicals that cause various human potentially affected by changes that occur during food
diseases. Studies have found that vegetables have processing (harvesting, preparation and handling).8
high antioxidant activities.1,2 There is a considerable Several groups have carried out studies on the loss
amount of epidemiological evidence indicating an of antioxidant activity and responsible components
association between diets rich in fresh fruits and during processing and storage.7,9 – 12
vegetables and a decreased risk of cardiovascular The study aimed to investigate the effect of different
disease and certain cancers. It is generally assumed that blanching times on the antioxidant activity and
the responsible dietary constituents contributing to total polyphenol content in selected fresh cruciferous
these protective effects are vitamins, minerals, dietary vegetables, commonly consumed in Malaysia as
fiber and polyphenols.3,4 prepared in boiling water using either fresh or
Cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage are among refrigerated produce, with the hope that the findings
the most important dietary vegetables consumed in would guide future practice on suitable blanching
Malaysia owing to their availability in local markets, times in order to minimize the degradation of
cheapness and consumer preference. Most cruciferous antioxidant activity in fresh vegetables.
vegetables undergo cooking processes rather than
being eaten raw. This process involves heat and
exposure to oxidation.5 Blanching by immersion MATERIALS AND METHODS
in boiling water or by treatment with steam is Vegetables
one of the cooking practices often used. Blanching Samples of vegetables, namely red cabbage (heading
results in inactivation of enzymes, softening of cabbage) (Brassica oleracea var capitata rubra), Chinese
the structure of vegetables and also changes in cabbage (Cantonese name: Wong baak) (non-heading
mechanical properties such as flexibility and strength cabbage) (Brassica rapa pekinensis var cylindrica),
during the first 12 min of blanching.6 Gil et al 7 green cabbage (heading cabbage) (Brassica oleracea
have shown that household cooking results in the var capitata), mustard cabbage (non-heading cabbage)

∗ Correspondence to: Ismail Amin, Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra
Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
E-mail: [email protected]
(Received 15 January 2004; revised version received 25 January 2004; accepted 15 February 2005)
Published online 28 June 2005
 2005 Society of Chemical Industry. J Sci Food Agric 0022–5142/2005/$30.00 2314
 Effect of vegetable blanching times on antioxidant properties

(Brassica juncea var rugosa) and Chinese white cabbage (Heidolph Instruments) at 90 rpm for 10 min. Then,
(Cantonese name: Pak choi) (non-heading cabbage) 100 ml of distilled water were added to the residue
(Brassica rapa var chinensis) were purchased from a wet and the mixture was shaken to form a liposome
market at Sri Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia. solution. A 5-ml aliquot of the liposome solution
was then added to 0.2 ml of distilled water (as
Chemicals a control) or corresponding vegetable extracts at
Tween 20, linoleic acid, DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1- 10 mg ml−1 . The samples were then subjected to
picrylhydrazyl), gallic acid and β-carotene were thermal autoxidation in a Model 810 water-bath
purchased from Sigma Chemical (St Louis, MO, (Protech, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) at 45 ◦ C for 2 h.
USA), Folin–Ciocalteu reagent and methanol from The absorbance of the mixture was monitored using
Merck (Darmstadt, Germany), chloroform from BDH a UV1601 UV–visible spectrophotometer (Shimadzu,
Chemicals (Poole, UK) and sodium bicarbonate from Rydalmere, New South Wales, Australia) at 470 nm.
May and Baker (Dagenham, UK). Other chemicals The absorbance was read every 15 min against a blank
used were of analytical grade. which consisted of emulsion without β-carotene. All
samples were measured in duplicate.
Preparation of samples The antioxidant activity (AA) was calculated
After purchase, all the vegetables were brought to the according to the following equation:
laboratory to be washed and weighed. One kilogram
of each type of vegetable was used for this study. Each AA (%) = [1 − (A0 − At )/(A0 0 − A0 t )] × 100
sample was chopped into small pieces and divided into
two portions, 600 g for blanching treatment and 400 g where A0 and A0 0 = absorbance values measured at
for fresh sample without any treatment. The blanched zero time of incubation for test sample and control,
and fresh vegetables were then freeze-dried in a freeze- respectively, and At and A0 t = absorbance measured
dryer (Virtis, Gardiner, New York, USA). The samples in the test sample and control, respectively, after
were ground into small particles in a blender (MX- incubation for 120 min.
291N, National, Selangor, Malaysia) and then kept
at −20 ◦ C for further analysis. Extraction of each Determination of free radical scavenging activity
ground sample (fresh, 5, 10 and 15 min blanched) The free radical scavenging activity of vegetable
was carried out by mixing with deionized water in a extracts and the standard (ascorbic acid) was
ratio of 1:10 (w/w). The mixture was shaken using a determined according to the DPPH free radical
Unimax 1010 orbital shaker (Heidolph Instruments, scavenging assay procedure described by Tang et al.14
Schwabach, Germany) at 200 rpm for 1 h at room An aliquot of 200 µl of sample extract (10 mg ml−1 ) or
temperature (28 ◦ C). The extracts were then filtered ascorbic acid was added to 1 ml of 0.2 mM DPPH
through a Whatman No 4 filter-paper (Whatman, in anhydrous methanol. The mixture was shaken
Maidstone, UK) to obtain a clear solution. vigorously and left to stand for 30 min at room
temperature in the dark. The absorbance at 517 nm
Blanching with deionized water as the blank was measured using
For blanching treatment, the vegetables were then a spectrophotometer (Shimadzu, Rydalmere, New
randomly divided into three homogeneous groups South Wales, Australia). A 20 µl volume of deionized
(200 g for each group). Samples were blanched for water was mixed with 1 ml of DPPH serving as the
thee different times, 5, 10 and 15 min. Blanching was control. Triplicate samples were analyzed. The radical
done by simmering the sample in 1000 ml of hot water scavenging activity was calculated as follows:
(98 ◦ C). The ratio of sample to water was 1:5 (w/w).
After blanching, the samples were cooled to room Scavenging activity (%)
temperature under running tap water.  
absorbance of
 sample at 517 nm 
= 1 − × 100
Determination of antioxidant activity absorbance of 
The total antioxidant activity of the sample extracts control at 517 nm
and control (deionized water) were determined
according to the β-carotene bleaching assay following Determination of total phenolic content
the procedure described by Velioglu et al 13 with slight The total phenolic content of vegetable extracts in
modifications. In these modifications, non-oxygenated deionized water was determined by the Folin–Cio-
distilled water was used and the absorbance was read calteu assay following the procedure described by
at 15- instead of 10-min intervals to monitor the Velioglu et al 13 with some modifications. In this study,
rate of bleaching of β-carotene. For a typical assay, vegetable extracts were filtered through a Whatman
1 ml of β-carotene (0.2 mg ml−1 in chloroform) was No 4 filter-paper instead of using centrifugation
added to a round-bottomed flask (500 ml) containing to obtain a clear solution. The volumes of the
0.02 ml of linoleic acid and 0.2 ml of Tween 20. The reagents used in this study were double those in
mixture was evaporated to dryness under vacuum the previous method. The sample was prepared at
at 40 ◦ C using a Laborata 4000 rotary evaporator a concentration of 5 rather than 1 mg ml−1 . For a

J Sci Food Agric 85:2314–2320 (2005) 2315

I Amin, WY Lee

typical assay, 0.1 mg of sample was extracted with for Chinese cabbage (fresh and blanched). Figure 1e
20 ml of deionized water by placing the mixture on shows a higher bleaching rate for fresh and blanched
an orbital shaker at 200 rpm for 2 h. The extract was (5, 10 and 15 min) Chinese white cabbage than for the
filtered through a Whatman No 4 filter-paper to obtain other samples. This shows that Chinese white cabbage
a clear solution. A 200 µl volume of clear extract had a low antioxidant activity.
was mixed with 1.5 ml of Folin–Ciocalteu reagent The antioxidant activity of red cabbage decreased
(previously diluted 10-fold with distilled water) and to 41% after blanching for 5 min (Table 1). A further
then left to stand for 5 min at room temperature. decrease in antioxidant activity could be observed after
Then, 1.5 ml of sodium bicarbonate (60 g l−1 ) was red cabbage was blanched for 10 min, but after 15 min
added to the mixture containing vegetable extract of blanching the antioxidant activity was slightly
and Folin–Ciocalteu reagent and left to stand for increased to 39%. No significant difference could be
90 min at room temperature before the absorbance found in the LSD test for the means of antioxidant
was measured at 725 nm. All assays were performed activity between red cabbage blanched for 5, 10 and
in duplicate. 15 min. There was a significant difference (p < 0.05) in
Gallic acid was used as the standard for estimating the means of antioxidant activity of fresh and blanched
the total phenolic content of the vegetables studied. A red cabbage.
calibration curve (0.001–0.007 mg ml−1 ) was plotted No significant difference was observed for Chinese
using gallic acid. The total phenolic contents of cabbage that was blanched for 5 and 10 min. However,
the vegetable extracts were expressed as gallic acid the antioxidant activity of Chinese cabbage was
equivalents in g kg−1 fresh weight. decreased significantly (p < 0.05) after 15 min of
blanching (Table 1). The results of the one-way
ANOVA showed a significant difference (p < 0.05)
Statistical analysis
in the mean antioxidant activity between fresh and
Results obtained were expressed as mean ± standard
Chinese cabbage that was blanched for 5, 10 and
deviation. One-way ANOVA was used to analyze
15 min. Furthermore, a significant difference (p <
the mean differences between samples with different
0.05) was found in the mean antioxidant activity of
times of blanching treatments at a significance level
Chinese cabbage blanched for 15 min and the samples
of p < 0.05. The Social Package for Social Science
blanched for 5 and 10 min. However, no significant
version 10.0 (SPSS Inc, Chicago, IL, USA) was used
difference was found between Chinese cabbage that
for statistical analysis.
was blanched for 5 and 10 min.
For cabbage, after blanching for 5 and 10 min, the
antioxidant activity remained fairly stable (Table 1).
RESULTS However, a significant decrease (p < 0.05) in the
Effect of different blanching times on the antioxidant activity of cabbage after blanching for
antioxidant activity 15 min was observed. No significant difference
The blanching effect of cruciferous vegetables on the was found between fresh cabbage and cabbage
β-carotene bleaching rates is shown in Fig 1a–e. that was blanched for 5 and 10 min. The mean
The results indicate that not all fresh cruciferous antioxidant activity of cabbage blanched for 15 min
vegetables possessed a higher antioxidant capacity than was significantly different (p < 0.05) to that of the
blanched vegetables. Except for red cabbage, cabbage other blanched samples.
and mustard cabbage, the other samples studied, A negligible reduction in antioxidant activity was
when blanched for 15 min, showed a higher bleaching observed in mustard cabbage after blanching for 5,
rate compared with the samples blanched for 5 and 10 and 15 min compared with the fresh sample.
10 min. A lower bleaching rate was observed with After blanching for 10 and 15 min, the antioxidant
fresh Chinese cabbage than with the other cruciferous activity had dropped to 64 and 63%, respectively
vegetables studied (Fig 1b). A more stable trend could (Table 1). ANOVA showed that there was no
be observed in the decrease in antioxidant activity significant difference in the means of antioxidant

Table 1. Total antioxidant activity of fresh and blanched vegetables extracts at 10 mg ml−1 using β-carotene bleaching assay

Antioxidant activity (%)

Treatment Red Chi Cab Mus Whi

Fresh 43.68 ± 3.76b 66.49 ± 0.75c 52.66 ± 0.75b 71.28 ± 4.51b 68.62 ± 3.76b
Blanched 5 min 40.96 ± 2.26a 46.28 ± 5.27b 52.13 ± 1.51b 67.66 ± 2.40a,b 52.13 ± 4.51a
Blanched 10 min 37.23 ± 0.00a 45.21 ± 0.75b 51.60 ± 2.26b 63.83 ± 0.00a,b 51.07 ± 6.02a
Blanched 15 min 39.36 ± 0.00a 26.60 ± 0.00a 25.53 ± 3.01a 62.77 ± 3.01a 49.47 ± 0.75a

Red = red cabbage, Chi = Chinese Cabbage, Cab = cabbage, Mus = mustard cabbage, Whi = Chinese white cabbage.
The antioxidant activity was calculated based on the equation in the section ‘Determination of antioxidant activity’. Values are expressed as mean ±
standard deviation of three replicate measurements.
a,b,c
Values with different superscripts were significantly different by the LSD test at the level of p < 0.05.

2316 J Sci Food Agric 85:2314–2320 (2005)

 Effect of vegetable blanching times on antioxidant properties

0.12
0.12

0.1
Absorbance (470 nm)

0.1

Absorbance (470 nm)

0.08 Fresh Fresh

Blanched
0.08 Blanched
5 min 5 min
0.06 Blanched Blanched
10 min 0.06 10 min
Blanched Blanched
15 min 15 min
0.04 0.04

(a) (b)
0.02 0.02
0 15 30 45 60 75 90 105 120 0 15 30 45 60 75 90 105 120
Time (min) Time (min)

0.12 0.12

0.1 0.1
Absorbance (470 nm)

Absorbance (470 nm)

Fresh Fresh
0.08 Blanched 0.08 Blanched
5 min 5 min
Blanched Blanched
0.06 10 min 0.06 10 min
Blanched Blanched
15 min 15 min
0.04 0.04

(c) (d)
0.02 0.02
0 15 30 45 60 75 90 105 120 0 15 30 45 60 75 90 105 120
Time (min) Time (min)

0.12

0.1 Fresh
Absorbance (470 nm)

Blanched
5 min
0.08 Blanched
10 min
Blanched
0.06 15 min

0.04

(e)
0.02
0 15 30 45 60 75 90 105 120
Time (min)

Figure 1. Antioxidant activity of fresh and blanched (a) red cabbage, (b) Chinese cabbage, (c) cabbage, (d) mustard cabbage and (e) Chinese white
cabbage extracts at 10 mg ml−1 using a β-carotene bleaching assay.

activity between all the different mustard cabbage Chinese white cabbage that was blanched for 5, 10
extracts tested. There was a significant difference and 15 min. However, no significant difference was
(p < 0.05) in the means of antioxidant activity found between samples that were blanched for 5, 10
of fresh mustard cabbage and mustard cabbage and 15 min.
blanched for 15 min. However, there was no significant
difference in the means of antioxidant activity between Effect of different blanching times on the free
mustard cabbage that was blanched for 5 and radical scavenging activity
10 min. Table 2 summarizes the means of free radical scav-
After blanching for 5 min, the antioxidant activity of enging activity of the fresh and blanched cruciferous
fresh Chinese white cabbage had decreased to 52% vegetables. The results clearly show a decrease in rad-
(Table 1). No significant difference in antioxidant ical scavenging activity of all samples after blanching
activity was observed when the vegetable was blanched for up to 15 min. Fresh red cabbage showed a reduc-
for 10 and 15 min. One-way ANOVA showed a tion in radical scavenging activity from 72 to 61% after
significant difference (p < 0.05) between fresh and blanching for 5 min. Red cabbage that was blanched

J Sci Food Agric 85:2314–2320 (2005) 2317

I Amin, WY Lee

Table 2. Free radical scavenging activity of fresh and blanched vegetables extracts at 10 mg ml−1 using DPPH free radical scavenging assay

Radical scavenging activity (%)

Treatment Red Chi Cab Mus Whi

Fresh 72.23 ± 0.77c 50.32 ± 0.17d 49.68 ± 6.63c 36.99 ± 0.52c 21.15 ± 1.01c
Blanched 5 min 61.11 ± 4.72b 32.68 ± 3.64c 42.88 ± 0.25c 26.05 ± 0.87b 20.54 ± 0.15b,c
Blanched 10 min 28.84 ± 2.56a 22.44 ± 5.82b 29.05 ± 0.27b 12.98 ± 0.32a 18.48 ± 1.05b
Blanched 15 min 32.01 ± 1.19a 12.29 ± 1.50a 13.74 ± 4.02a 13.59 ± 1.70a 10.08 ± 1.89a

Red = red cabbage, Chi = Chinese Cabbage, Cab = cabbage, Mus = mustard cabbage, Whi = Chinese white cabbage.
Values are expressed as mean ± standard deviation of three replicate measurements.
a,b,c,d
Values with different superscripts were significantly different by the LSD test at the level of p < 0.05.

for 10 and 15 min yielded radical scavenging activities scavenging activity to 18 and 10%, respectively
of 29 and 32%, respectively (Table 2). ANOVA indi- (Table 2). Based on ANOVA, the means of the radical
cated that there was a significant difference (p < 0.05) scavenging activity of fresh and blanched Chinese
in the means of radical scavenging activity between white cabbage were significantly different (p < 0.05).
fresh and other samples of red cabbage. However, no No significant difference was found between 5- and
significant difference was found between red cabbage 10-min blanched, fresh and 5-min blanched Chinese
that was blanched for 10 and 15 min. white cabbage.
The radical scavenging activity Chinese cabbage
dropped from 50 to 33% after 5 min of blanching Effect of different blanching times on the total
and further decreased to 22 and 12% after 10 and phenolic content
15 min of blanching, respectively (Table 2). ANOVA Table 3 shows the total phenolic contents of fresh and
showed a significant difference (p < 0.05) in the means blanched cruciferous vegetables. Fresh red cabbage
of radical scavenging activity between fresh Chinese had a very high phenolic content, 6.79 g gallic acid
cabbage before and after blanching. equivalents (GAE) kg−1 fresh sample. A reduction in
Cabbage showed a decrease in radical scavenging total phenolic content of red cabbage was detected
activity after blanching for 5 min (43%), 10 min (29%) after blanching for 5 min. Furthermore, a decrease in
and 15 min (14%) (Table 2). One-way ANOVA total phenolic content occurred after 10 and 15 min of
indicated a significant difference (p < 0.05) in the blanching, to 4.35 and 4.29 g GAE kg−1 , respectively.
means of radical scavenging activity between the fresh ANOVA showed a significant difference (p < 0.05) in
cabbage and samples blanched for 10 and 15 min. the means of total phenolic content between fresh and
However, no significant difference was found between blanched red cabbage.
fresh cabbage and cabbage blanched for 5 min. The total phenolic content in Chinese cabbage
After 5, 10 and 15 min of blanching, the radical decreased to 0.75 g GAE kg−1 after 5 min of blanching,
scavenging activity of mustard cabbage had decreased but increased to 1.17 g GAE kg−1 after 10 min of
to 26, 13 and 14%, respectively (Table 2). ANOVA blanching (Table 3). Furthermore, it exhibited an
showed a significant difference (p < 0.05) in the means increment of total phenolic content from 1.58 to
of radical scavenging activity of the fresh vegetable and 1.94 g GAE kg−1 after 15 min of blanching. This result
mustard cabbage blanched for 5, 10 and 15 min. No suggests that heat treatment might have released
significant difference was observed between mustard phenolic compounds. One-way ANOVA indicated a
cabbage that was blanched for 10 and 15 min. significant difference (p < 0.05) in the means of total
For Chinese white cabbage, 5 min of blanching did phenolic content between fresh and blanched Chinese
not result in much difference in radical scavenging cabbage.
activity compared with fresh Chinese white cabbage. A significant decline in total phenolic content of
Blanching for 10 and 15 min decreased the radical fresh and blanched cabbage was clearly observed.

Table 3. Total phenolic content of fresh and blanched vegetables extracts at 5 mg ml−1 using the Folin–Ciocalteu assay

Total phenolic content (GAE) (g kg−1 fresh weight)

Treatment Red Chi Cab Mus Whi

Fresh 6.79 ± 0.00d 1.58 ± 0.01c 2.24 ± 0.01d 1.83 ± 0.03c 2.68 ± 0.01d
Blanched 5 min 6.48 ± 0.01c 0.75 ± 0.03a 1.79 ± 0.00c 1.39 ± 0.00b 1.14 ± 0.01c
Blanched 10 min 4.35 ± 0.03b 1.17 ± 0.02b 1.13 ± 0.00b 0.89 ± 0.03a 0.99 ± 0.00b
Blanched 15 min 4.29 ± 0.00a 1.94 ± 0.01d 1.01 ± 0.03a 0.84 ± 0.04a 0.49 ± 0.03a

Red = red cabbage, Chi = Chinese Cabbage, Cab = cabbage, Mus = mustard cabbage, Whi = Chinese white cabbage.
Values are expressed as mean ± standard deviation of three replicate measurements. Total phenolic contents of all samples are expressed as gallic
acid equivalents (GAE).
a,b,c,d
Values with different superscripts were significantly different by the LSD test at the level of p < 0.05.

2318 J Sci Food Agric 85:2314–2320 (2005)

 Effect of vegetable blanching times on antioxidant properties

Fresh cabbage had a total phenolic content of In addition, blanching can result in loss of
2.24 g GAE kg−1 fresh weight. The loss of phenolic antioxidant activity due to the large surface area
compounds in fresh cabbage after blanching for 5, of the vegetables in contact with the water during
10 and 15 min was 20, 50 and 55%, respectively blanching.10 Hence the low antioxidant activities of
(Table 3). There was a significant difference (p < the blanched vegetables studied might be due to the
0.05) in the means of total phenolic content between loss of activity of some antioxidant components during
fresh and blanched cabbage extracts. blanching. Furthermore, there was also the probability
Mustard cabbage showed a steady trend in the loss of that most components with high antioxidant activity
phenolic contents. Fresh unblanched mustard cabbage had high solubility in boiling water.
had a total phenolic content of 1.83 g GAE kg−1 fresh In this study, blanching for more than 5 min resulted
weight, followed by 1.39 g GAE kg−1 after blanching in a significant loss of antioxidant activity, which was
for 5 min. In addition, about 51 and 54% of the supported by the results for total phenolic content.
total phenolic content were lost after blanching for This might have resulted in a decreased ability of
10 and 15 min, respectively (Table 3). ANOVA found the studied vegetables to scavenge free radicals. The
a significant difference (p < 0.05) in the means of results obtained in this study were in agreement with
total phenolic content in mustard cabbage between those of Sánchez-Moreno et al,3 Gil et al 9 and Kurilich
fresh and blanched samples. However, no significant et al.21 However, Chu et al 22 found that blanching for
difference was found between mustard cabbage that 30–60 s increased free radical scavenging activity in
was blanched for 10 and 15 min. sweet potato leaves.
Fresh Chinese white cabbage extract had a total Different blanching times might have resulted
phenolic content of 2.68 g GAE kg−1 fresh weight. in some loss of antioxidants such as ascorbic
After 5 min of blanching, its total phenolic content had acid, α-tocopherol and phenolic compounds such
decreased by about 58% to 1.14 g GAE kg−1 . About as flavonoids. On the other hand, heat also tends
63 and 82% reductions in total phenolic content were to degrade certain compounds with antioxidant
observed after Chinese white cabbage was blanched properties. In addition, the amount of heat and
for 10 and 15 min, respectively (Table 3). Among time needed to cause any loss or degradation of the
all the cruciferous vegetables studied, Chinese white associated components may differ for each vegetable.
cabbage exhibited the greatest lost of total phenolic As seen for antioxidant activity, the free radical
content after blanching. There was a significant scavenging activity increased in red cabbage after
difference (p < 0.05) in the means of total phenolic longer blanching times. This might have been due
content between fresh and blanched Chinese white to the presence of heat-stable antioxidant components
cabbage. during blanching. This finding is in agreement with
Papetti et al.20 On the other hand, the free radical
scavenging activity of all other vegetables decreased
DISCUSSION with longer blanching times.
The antioxidant activities of cruciferous vegetables The total phenolic content of red cabbage,
decreased in the order fresh > 5-min blanched > 10- cabbage, mustard cabbage and Chinese white cabbage
min blanched > 15-min blanched, except for red decreased in the order of fresh > 5-min blanched
cabbage, for which the order was fresh > 5-min > 10-min blanched > 15-min blanched, whereas the
blanched > 15-min blanched > 10-min blanched. order for Chinese cabbage was 15-min blanched >
In addition, only mustard cabbage had a similar fresh > 10-min blanched > 5-min blanched. The
order of free radical scavenging activity as red low phenolic content of red cabbage, cabbage and
cabbage after blanching. Vegetables are known to Chinese white cabbage after blanching might have
be rich in antioxidant components such as vitamin been due to the degradation of phenolic compounds
C, β-carotene, carotenoids, polyphenols and other or their release from vegetable tissues into the boiling
phytochemicals. These components are reported to water. In this study, heat treatment through blanching
contribute high antioxidant activities. Previous studies might have resulted in a greater loss of red cabbage
have indicated the influence of different cooking pigments. It has been reported that anthocyanin
practices on the content of antioxidant components pigments are sensitive to heat and partly degrade into
in selected vegetables.15 – 18 Up to 75% of the vitamin other products.9 According to Gil et al,7 the flavonoid
C present in green vegetables might be lost during content in fresh-cut spinach decreased significantly
cooking.19 Blanching of broccoli, carrots and green after cooking. However, Chu et al 22 reported that a
beans resulted in the loss of ascorbic acid.10 Gil blanching time of not more than 1 min retained more
et al 7 reported that cooking spinach in boiling water flavonoid content.
extracted 60% of vitamin C and 50% of total Moure et al 23 reported that apolar solvents were
flavonoids. Tomatoes and onions showed a lowered found to be the most suitable extraction medium for
quercetin content due to flavonoid breakdown during extracting phenolic compounds from water. However,
cooking.15 Papetti et al 20 reported that Cichorium a study found that a water extract of dittany
vegetable juices exhibited anti- and pro-oxidant (Origanum dictamnus) exhibited an unexpectedly high
activity after undergoing thermal treatments. concentration of phenolic compounds compared with

J Sci Food Agric 85:2314–2320 (2005) 2319

I Amin, WY Lee

the organic solvents.24 Along with ethanol, water is 9 Gil MI, Tomás-Barberán FA, Hess-Pierce B, Holcroft DM and
Kader AA, Antioxidant activity of pomegranate juice and its
the most widely employed extraction medium owing
relationship with phenolic composition and processing. J Agric
to their hygienic characteristics.23 Food Chem 48:4581–4589 (2000).
Further studies are under way to evaluate the distri- 10 Howard LA, Wong AD, Perry AK and Klein BP, β-Carotene
bution of the polyphenol composition in the remaining and ascorbic acid retention in fresh and processed vegetables.
water and cooked vegetables after blanching. J Food Sci 64:929–936 (1999).
11 Jiménez-Escrig A, Jiménez-Jiménez I, Pulido R and Saura-
Calixto F, Antioxidant activity of fresh and processed edible
seaweeds. J Sci Food Agric 18:530–534 (2001).
CONCLUSION 12 Talcott ST, Howard LR and Brenes CH, Antioxidant changes
Major losses of antioxidant properties and total and sensory properties of carrot puree processed with and
without periderm tissue. J Agric Food Chem 48:1315–1321
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(2000).
studied were observed after blanching for more 13 Velioglu YS, Mazza G, Gao L and Oomah BD, Antioxidant
than 5 min. However, this depended on the type activity and total phenolics in selected fruits, vegetables
of cruciferous vegetable. Minimal heat treatment in and grain products. J Agric Food Chem 46:4113–4117
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 16 Ewald C, Fjelkner-Modig S, Johansson K, Sjöholm I and
The authors acknowledge the assistance of research Åkesson B, Effect of processing on major flavonoids in pro-
staff in the Department of Nutrition and Health cessed onions, green beans and peas. Food Chem 64:231–235
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17 Price KR, Bacon JR and Rhodes MJC, Effect of storage and
thanks to Universiti Putra Malaysia for the use of
domestic processing on the content and composition of
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18 Hirota S, Shimoda T and Takahama U, Tissue and spatial
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