This experiment aimed to compare the changes of two varieties of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) concerning the cooking time and hardness data during their natural and accelerated aging processes. The aging of a parcel of each variety of bean (Iapar 81 - carioca variety and Iapar 44 - black variety) was performed in a 40ºC oven at 76% RH during 15, 30, 45, 60, and 75 days. Another parcel of the same varieties was submitted to the aging at room conditions during 3, 6, 9, and 12 months. The control lot was storage at 5 ºC. After each storage time, cooking time and hardness parameters were registered. Carioca variety showed the longest cooking times when compared to the black beans, in both storage systems. Cooked beans of carioca variety presented greater hardness than the black beans, not only in the accelerated aging but also in the natural aging. The hardness of the grains cooked and then cooled at room temperature was higher than the grains cooled at 60 ºC, since the temperature influenced the measurements, probably due to the greatest starch retrogradation at room temperature. At last, it may be concluded that twenty days of the accelerated aging was equivalent to one year in natural conditions, concerning the hardness of the grains.
Storage; Post-harvest; Hardness; Phaseolus vulgaris; cooking time
