Pumpkin flours were produced by hot-air oven drying or freeze-drying, with or without a pre-treatment
with metabisulfite. Freeze-dried pumpkin flour had deep orange color while metabisulfite caused loss of
fresh pumpkin color. Freeze-drying let to better functional properties: higher water holding capacity
(92 mL 100 g1), oil binding capacity (314 mL 100 g1) and synergy with BSA for emulsification. Oven
drying and metabisulfite pre-treatment both increased phenolic contents and bioaccessible phenolics
(1237, 457 mg of GAE 100 g1 DW, respectively). The most abundant phenolic acids were p-hydroxybenzoic
(0.83e1.68 mg g1), followed by caffeic acid (0.68e1.28 mg g1) and chlorogenic acid (0.35
e0.92 mg g1) in all pumpkin flours. Oven-drying and metabisulfite pre-treatment led to higher phenolic
acid levels. Oven-dried pumpkin flour without metabisulfite pre-treatment may be more appropriate as
a functional and nutritional ingredient