Fava beans in roasted snacks

A well-known and popular snack from Turkey, known as Leblebi, is usually made from roasted chickpeas. However, fava beans are also suitable for the preparation of such snacks. For this purpose, the cleaned beans are first soaked in water or salt water and swollen. This is followed by an initial heat treatment, followed by a rest period. Then the fava beans are cooked and roasted. The heat during roasting transforms the water inside the grains into water vapor, creating voids and breaking up the compact structure of the grains.

Fava bean flour in extruded snacks

One process for producing snacks that uses starch puffing under pressure drop is extrusion. The bean flour is pressed through a nozzle under heat and pressure. The water evaporates as the dough exits the nozzle, creating a porous structure.

Particularly with the starch-rich fraction of our fava bean, it is possible in this way to

• crispy, airy extrudates(snacks)
• with appealing roasted aromas and
• produce without the undesirable bean taste
  (the flavor shifts towards the nutty).

In terms of taste and texture, these extrudates are superior to other raw materials such as corn.