Technological quality and antioxidant characteristics of different colored Desi and Kabuli chickpea accessions

BACKGROUND: Chickpeas are globally vital nutritional legumes, but the exact relationship between seed coat color, technological processing quality, and phytochemical profiles across diverse accessions remains poorly understood. OBJECTIVE: This study evaluated the diversity associated with technological quality and phytochemical characteristics of twenty-eight Desi and Kabuli chickpea genotypes with varying seed coat colors, including brown, dark brown, light brown, green, black, and cream/beige. METHODS: Technological quality traits (protein content, color values, seed weight, volume, swelling, and water absorption) were assessed by standard protocols, and standard spectrophotometric assays were used to record total phenolic, flavonoid, and antioxidant capacities (DPPH, ABTS, CUPRAC, FRAP, and phosphomolybdenum). RESULTS: The results revealed that cream/beige Kabuli genotypes exhibited superior technological traits, including higher 100-seed weight (14.7-42.4 g), greater wet volume (130-180 mL), and enhanced water absorption (0.160-0.475 mL) and swelling capacities (0.165-0.435 mL), all of which were strongly and positively intercorrelated (r ≥ 0.94). Unrooted dendrogram analysis indicated that PI 360304 (light brown), PI 477297 (dark brown), PI 471915 (dark brown), and W6 24873 (green) were clustered together with notably high total phenolic content and total flavonoid content, along with strong antioxidant capacity, as confirmed by the CUPRAC, FRAP, and phosphomolybdenum tests. CONCLUSIONS: Cream/beige Kabuli genotypes were superior for technological quality, whereas colored Desi genotypes had significantly higher amounts of health-promoting compounds. These results are essential to contribute the clarification of genetic basis of this variability and to guide future breeding efforts in chickpeas. HIGHLIGHTS: The cream/beige Kabuli genotypes W6 17604, W6 25931, W6 25868, W6 17251, and PI 22585 consistently exhibited high values for technological quality parameters. The colored Desi genotypes PI 360304 (light brown), PI 477297 (dark brown), PI 471915 (dark brown), and W6 24873 (green) had high total phenolic content, total flavonoid content, and strong antioxidant capacity.