“Dokoro” Nutrient Dense Porridge Formulated from Fruits, Legumes and Cereal

Tecklah Usai – Department of Technology and Design Education.
Ruth Nyoka – Department of Food Science and Nutrition, Midlands State University, Zimbabwe.
Faith Badza – Department of Food Science and Nutrition, Midlands State University, Zimbabwe.
Beaula Mutonhodza – Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food Science, University of Zimbabwe.
Email: usait@staff.msu.ac.zw

Abstract: The study aimed at determining the possibility of offering an alternative to the common maize meal porridge with a porridge formulated from a mixture of fruits, legumes and cereals. It was underpinned by a positivist research paradigm which followed an experimental research design. The conveniently selected panellists for product testing consisted of 30 primary school pupils who were conveniently selected in Grade 7 from one school and were willing to participate. Composite flours consisting of fruits, cereals and legumes were used to produce a porridge which was compared with unrefined maize meal porridge for acceptability. This was followed by the evaluation of nutrient composition for both dokoro and maize meal. The mean acceptance score for dokoro porridge (Mean = 7.6, SD = 0.26) was significantly higher (p≤001) than the acceptance score for maize porridge (Mean = 5.8, SD = 0.14), t (58) = -3.75, p = 0.000. Moreover, dokoro composite powder had a significantly higher content values for moisture (p ≤0.001), ash (p≤0.003), protein (p≤0.014), crude fibre (p≤0.001), vitamin C, energy, zinc and iron (p≤0.001) than maize powder. The study concludes that Dokoro porridge is a healthier food product that is more acceptable and contains significantly higher nutrient values than the common maize meal porridge. It is recommended to replicate the study using a larger sample of participants of different age groups from various locations in the country to determine the potential of using the dokora product nationwide.