BIOCHEMICAL EVALUATION OF PEPPER FRUIT (DENNETTIA TRIPETALA) AND ITS USE AS SUBSTITUTE FOR GINGER IN ZOBO DRINK PRODUCTION

The Nutritional and anti-nutritional factors of Dennettia tripetala (ripe and unripe) were investigated. Result showed that ripe Dennettia tripetala contains protein (4.67%), moisture (18.73%), fat (5.78%), ash (3.18%), fiber (14.32%), carbohydrate (53.32%) while the unripe contains protein (6.59%), moisture (15.26%), fat (5.52%), ash (4.13%), fiber (17.05%) and carbohydrate (51.45%). The anti-nutritional content of Dennettia tripetala showed that the unripe has higher anti-nutrients; saponin (0.27mg/g), flavonoid (3.10mg/g), alkaloid (0.33mg/g) and tannin (0.36mg/g) while the ripe has saponin (0.15mg/g), flavonoid (1.25mg/g) alkaloid (0.14mg/g) and tannin (0.18mg/g). The sensory evaluation revealed that there was no significant difference at (p