Groats

Groats 

a food product that consists of whole or ground grains of various crops. Most groats are made from grains of rice, millet, and buckwheat; some are made from oats, corn, wheat, and peas. Groats are less frequently made from sorghum, green foxtail, and lentils; however, groats from these plants are the basic or most important dietary products in several countries of Africa and East Asia. Sago, which is obtained from the heart-wood of the trunks of certain palms, and artificial sago, which is derived from starch, are also used as groats.

In the USSR, groats are produced from various types of grains: from buckwheat (steamed and unsteamed whole buck-wheat and ground buckwheat), from grains of rice (white, polished, and broken rice), from oats (oat flour, whole steamed oats, rolled oats, and oat flakes), from peas (shelled peas, whole or split polished peas, and semolina-like crushed peas), from millet (husked polished millet), from barley (pearl barley, hulled barley), from wheat (Poltava and Artek polished hard wheat and semolina’the latter is made by grinding common wheat, a mixture of hard [20 percent] and common wheat, or only a hard wheat), and from corn (polished corn, corn flakes, and corn sticks). Ready-to-eat puffed wheat, puffed rice, and popcorn are also produced from the grains of wheat, rice, and corn.

Groats are high in nutritional value. Because the grains are hulled, the groats are easily assimilated, nutritious, highly caloric, and tasty. All groats contain a great amount of carbohydrates. The most nutritious groats are those made of buckwheat, rice, legumes, and oats. Their proteins include the largest quantity of essential amino acids. To increase their nutritional value, groats are enriched with proteins (dry skim milk), vitamins, and trace elements. According to physiologically substantiated nutritional requirements, it is recommended that a person consume an average of 14—15 kg of various types of groats annually. They are particularly important in the diets of children and ill persons. Groats are used principally as kasha or in the preparation of soups and food concentrates. In some countries, groats are used as bread substitutes (for example, rice in India, China, and Japan).

REFERENCE

See references under .

L. A. TRISVIATSKII