Total phenolics were efficiently extracted using only water as solvent.
Pure ethanol and methanol were not good enough for isoflavones extraction.
50 wt% aqueous ethanol can be used to obtain extracts with high phenolics content and antioxidant activity.
The extractability of isoflavones is not completely consistent with the polarity of solvent.
Optimisation of the solvent system should be investigated for each sample type.