Climate smart, underutilised, healthful future cereal: Protein content, hydration properties, starch digestibility and consumer liking of pearl millet-based Oyster mushroom crackers

Abstract

Pearl millet is an underutilised cereal. This study investigated the use of undervalued pearl millet grain in the manufacturing of value-added low sugar crackers that are protein-enhanced by the incorporation of Oyster mushroom. Equal amounts of pearl millet and wheat bread flour were mixed. This mixture was substituted to have 0 % (control), 5, 10 and 15 % Oyster mushroom powder. The moisture, protein, physical characteristics, in vitro starch digestibility of the composite flours and crackers were determined. The 15 % Oyster mushroom incorporation significantly increased the crackers’ protein (8.8 to 10.4 %). The inclusion of 15 % Oyster mushroom significantly reduced the in vitro starch digestibility at 20, 60, 120 min from 16 % to 13 %, 26 % to 23 and 37 % to 31 %, respectively. The 5 % Oyster mushroom incorporated cracker was the most liked (7.1 score on a 9-point hedonic scale). These easy to manufacture shelf-stable crackers, using low and affordable technology, from shelf-stable, low water activity flours can be used to alleviate protein malnutrition especially in the rural areas of developing nations where there is no electricity and refrigeration facilities.