The common bean is one of the most cultivated crops in the Brazil, and thus, the search for cultivars that are more productive, adapted to the environment and have good cooking characteristics is intense. The objective of this study was to assess the behavior of different common bean genotypes in relation to protein content, cooking time and hydration capacity. The experiment was carried out during three successive crop seasons, including the dry and rainy seasons of 2005 and the dry season of 2006. The experiment was designed in a randomized blocks, with 24 treatments represented by the common bean genotypes (Carioca and Black commercial groups), with four replications. Beans produced during the rainy season of 2005 had the longest cooking time, the lowest protein content and the longest time for maximum hydration. Genotypes LP 98-20 and CNFC 9494 (Carioca commercial group), as well as the Graúna and IAC Una cultivars (Black commercial group) showed the shortest cooking time in all crop seasons, while Gen 96A10, CNFC 9484 (Carioca commercial group) and CNFP10138 (Preto commercial group) showed low percentage of hardshell grains and shorter time to maximum hydration.
Phaseolus vulgaris; protein content; cooking time; hardshell and genotype x environment interaction
