*2.7. Statistical Analysis*

Three replications were used to obtain the average and SD values for all tests. Data are presented as mean ± SD (*n* = 3). Analytical results were processed with Microsoft Excel 2018. Statistics were implemented through the Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) version 25.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). The analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey's tests were used to evaluate the statistical significance of di fferences in properties and composition. Statistical significance was accepted at *p* < 0.05. The mathematical model parameters used in chickpea seed hydration kinetics measurements were estimated using a nonlinear regression procedure performed using SigmaPlot software (Systat Software Inc. San Jose, CA, USA). Model suitability was evaluated using the coe fficient of determination ( *R*2), which indicates the model predictive quality (the higher the value for *R*2, the better the goodness of fit, and up to a value of 1, meaning exact fit). The hydration kinetics parameters given by the nonlinear regressions were used to compare chickpea cultivars and soaking treatments, including soaking time and soaking solutions. Pearson correlation coe fficients (*r*) for the relationships between all characteristics were calculated.
