*5.1.1 Fermentation*

Fermentation is a metabolic process carried out by anaerobic microorganisms in which carbohydrates are broken down to release energy. It is an age-old technique for food preservation. Pseudo-cereals are an adequate source of carbohydrates, minerals, vitamins, sterols, and other growth factors that sustains the microbe populations.

#### *Review on Pseudo-Cereals of India DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.101834*

These grains are composed of an indigenous microbiota comprising of molds, lactic acid bacteria (LAB), enterobacteria, etc. LAB are gram positive, strictly fermentative bacteria which carries out lactic acid fermentation and produces lactic acid as the major metabolic end product of carbohydrate fermentation and the most frequently used strain for this purpose is *Lactobacillus plantarum*.

Lactic acid fermentation is a commonly used food processing technique which can be employed in many different ways to improve nutritional and functional quality of pseudo-cereals such as production of bioactive peptides to stimulate immune system, increasing total phenolic content and antioxidant capacity, decreasing of anti-nutritional factors like phytic acid, tannins, and enzyme inhibitors. The formation of lactic acid during fermentation leads to a decrease in pH that results in enhanced activity of endogenous phytase. Phytases constitutes particular subgroup of phosphatases which are responsible for lowering or eliminating the anti-nutritional effect of phytic acid. Some LAB strains and other vitamin producing microorganisms can elevate the concentrations of natural form of vitamins that leads to the decrease in side effects of chemically synthesized vitamins. Hence, they can be utilized as an alternative source of biofortification which is also a cost-effective strategy and eliminates the need to add synthetic vitamins. Food products consumed after fermentation with LAB improves the overall nutritional quality by increasing vitamin B9 concentrations. There is a need to explore more beneficial effects of lactic acid fermentation to design novel and healthier edibles especially for patients with celiac disease [22, 23].

#### *5.1.2 Popping*

Also known as heat induced puffing, is a low-cost technology in which heating at atmospheric pressure gives rise to high internal pressure due to evaporation of moisture, causing the pericarp to break, leading to the expansion of endosperm. Puffed grains undergo dehydration as well as structural and textural changes. Puffing increases digestibility and functionality of the grains. Because of such modifications, *Amaranthus* flour has been proposed to be used as an ingredient in bakery products. Puffed grains are ready-to-eat products, also incorporated in the snack formulations [24].

#### *5.1.3 Germination*

Germination is a process in which a new plant arises from the seed if the seed is under favorable conditions. Imbibition is the first step in germination process in which the dry seed absorbs water which leads to the increased metabolic rates and subsequent growth. The interesting part is the rise of hydrolytic enzyme activities followed by breakdown of stored macromolecules in the seed. Such changes alter the technological properties and functionality of grains which is a desirable asset. During germination, the action of hydrolytic enzymes on starch increases its digestibility. It also increases the content of free amino acids which are readily absorbed compared to the intact proteins, influencing the postprandial protein metabolism. The breakdown of cell wall changes the solubility of fiber components and increases the amounts of bioactive compounds and antioxidant activities [25].

### *5.1.4 Cooking*

Grains of pseudo-cereals are generally eaten after boiling. However, excessive boiling decreases the phenolic contents of the grains. Highest retention of phenolic contents was observed by pressure cooking. From anti-nutritional aspect, no significant reduction was seen in anti-nutritional compounds, especially of phytic acid through boiling. Evaluation of minerals in *Amaranthus* revealed that boiling and steaming negatively affected the folate content and also certain essential amino acids [26].
