Assessment of the Effect of Drying Methods on Pumpkin ( Telferia occidentalis) Leaves

The effect of solar and sun drying on the nutritional composition of Telferia occidentalis was evaluated. Direct sun drying was carried out under the sun, while cabinet solar and tunnel solar dryer were used for the drying of the vegetable sample. Proximate and mineral analysis were carried out on the vegetable sample after drying for six days. The results of the proximate analysis showed relatively low moisture content across the three methods. The ash content ranged from 8.0% to 8.5%. The protein content ranged from 10.0% to 13.0% while carbohydrate content was from 66.6% to 67.0%. The result of mineral content of tunnel, cabinet solar drying and direct sun drying vegetable samples showed that the amount of Zn in the vegetable samples ranged from (0.02 to 0.07 mg/100 g), Ca ranged from (5.30 to 5.96 mg/100 g), Mg (0.33 to 0.35 mg/100 g) and Fe ranged from (0.38 to 1.27 mg/100 g). This study showed that tunnel solar dried vegetable samples had higher values of carbohydrate, protein and fiber content when compared with cabinet solar dried and direct sun dried vegetable samples. Mineral content of tunnel solar dried vegetable samples were also higher than cabinet solar and direct sun dried vegetable samples. It concludes that tunnel solar drying serves as a better method of drying because it retains more nutrients, relatively more hygienic with shorter drying time. It is thus recommended for adoption by farmers and market women.