Objectives/Goals
To determine which of the three cooking methods,
boiling, steaming, or microwaving, preserves the most vitamin C in vegetables,
specifically, broccoli. These cooking methods will be compared to a control of
raw broccoli.
Methods/Materials
To do this, an iodine and starch-based vitamin C
indicator solution is made, which turns from a dark blue to a lighter blue in
the presence of more vitamin C.
Using different concentrations of vitamin C
supplement powder in water, and adding a constant amount of each to tubes of
indicator solution, five different colors from lightest to darkest blue are
made.
The amount of vitamin C in each is: 2.4mg C/ml
water, 2.2mg /ml, 2.1mg /ml, 1.9mg /ml, and 1.7mg /ml. Four ounces broccoli is
then boiled, drained,processed with 100-ml water, and the juice is strained.
The juice is added drop by drop to indicator solution until it matches the
color produced by the 2.2 mg C/ml water concentration, using the other
concentrations to aid in the matching.
A formula is used to find the mg/oz of vitamin C in
the sample of broccoli. Data is recorded. This process is repeated with the
other cooking methods and the control of raw broccoli, ten trials each.
Results
I found that steaming the broccoli is the best way
to retain vitamin C. The control of raw broccoli had an average of 37 mg C/oz,
steaming, 31 mg C/oz, microwaving, 29 mg C/oz, and boiling, 24 mg C/oz.
Conclusions/Discussion
My results support my hypothesis that steaming the
broccoli would be able to preserve the most vitamin C in the vegetable. The
main factors that cause this are the water-solubility and high reactive
properties of the vitamin C.
This knowledge is very important. In a society that
is very much surrounded by health issues, the need to make our food as
healthful and useful as possible, especially concerning one of the most
important vitamins, is crucial.
Project Summary
My project examines which of three methods preserves
the most vitamin C in broccoli during cooking.
Project by Christopher W. Allen
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