Composition chimique des épices utilisées dans la préparation du Nah-poh et du Nkui de l'ouest Cameroun

Chemical Composition of some Spices Used in the Preparation of Nah-poh and Nkui from West Cameroon. Nkui and Nah poh are two traditional soups of the western province of Cameroon which contained many spices. Spices normally used in these soups were analysed to determine the contents of some of their constituents (lipids, proteins, carbohydrate, fibre, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron and oxalic acid). For the twenty-three samples studied, statistical analyses showed that their nutrient contents differed significantly (P level 5%) from one sample to another. The dry matter (DM) varied from 84.39 ± 0.26% (P. guineense) to 92.79 ± 0.05% (X. aethiopica). Lipid content varied greatly from one spice to another and from one part of the plant to another; M. myristica showed the greatest value (47.52%), while T. tetraptera had the lowest value of lipid content (0.32%). Protein contents of the samples varied from 2.65 ± 0.01 (H. zenkeri) to 17.87 ± 0.04% (S. zenkeri, fruit). Carbohydrate content varied remarkably, independently of the part of the plant used as spice. As for the mineral part, calcium content of the spices varied from 89.13 ± 0.21 mg/100 g DM (S. Zenkeri, fruit) to 2789.35 ± 0.92 mg/100 g DM (S. zenkeri, bark). Magnesium content was high and varied from 228.28 ± 0.35 mg/100 g DM (S. zenkeri, fruit) to 2800 ± 0.57 mg/100 g DM (S. Zenkeri, bark). Iron and phosphorus contents were low. For soluble oxalic acid, the highest value was obtained in the whole fruits of D. glomerata 7.39 g/100 g DM and the smallest in the fruits (0.4 g/100 g DM) of A. daniellii. The total oxalic acid varied between 0.52 (H. gabonii) and 6.59 g/100 g DM (X. africana). The crude fiber content varied from 4.17 ± 0.01% in the fruit of S. zenkeri to 56.00 ± 2.44% in the H. gabonii, bark's.