Changes of vitamin E content in rice bran with different heat treatment

Oil yield from unheated rice bran was 17.6% whereas that of microwave-heated rice bran increased to up to 18.4%. Content and composition of vitamin E in rice bran oil were affected by microwave heating. Especially, contents of α-tocopherol, α-tocotrienol, and γ-tocotrienol as well as total vitamin E were significantly (P <0.05) increased when the rice bran was subjected to microwave heating for up to 30 s. When rice bran was heated in an electric roaster up to 20 min at 170°C, 5 min at 180°C, and 3 min at 190°C, the total vitamin E content in rice bran oil increased significantly (P <0.05) followed by a considerable decline beyond those time points. Microwave heating was more effective for an increase in the vitamin E content than electric roaster heating. However, longer heating with both microwave and electric roaster caused a significant degradation of vitamin E resulting in a decreased content of total vitamin E.