Effect of egg white protein and soy protein fortification on physicochemical characteristics of banana pasta

Abstract

Research was conducted to investigate the effects of egg white protein and soy protein powder addition on physicochemical properties of banana pasta. The levels of protein fortification were 5, 10, and 15% of banana flour (w/w) for each type of protein. Pasta made from 100% of durum wheat semolina and 100% of banana were used as controls. The addition of soy or egg white protein showed significant differences on physicochemical properties compared with semolina pasta and pure banana pasta. Type of protein, level of protein, and the interaction between type of protein and the level of protein altered protein content. Soy protein gave higher protein content than egg white protein, whereas higher level of protein addition gave higher protein content of pasta. The fortified banana pasta had higher protein content than semolina pasta. There were no significant effects of soy or egg white protein addition to either insoluble or soluble dietary fiber content. It was also observed that the cooking properties of pasta (optimum cooking time, swelling index, water absorption index, and cooking loss) were affected by the level of protein addition and the type of protein. Textural analysis for tension and firmness of the pasta illustrated that protein fortification improved the textural characteristic of banana flour pasta. The addition of soy or egg white protein also improved the protein content of banana pasta making it equal to or even better than semolina pasta. Practical applications Research has been carried out to improve gluten-free products, not only for people with celiac diseases, but also for those who choose a healthy lifestyle. Gluten-free ingredients are challenging to work with as they cannot create a sufficiently strong binding network between their proteins and starch in the dough, especially in some products such as pasta products. The use of an additional protein source has the ability to improve the product quality and contribute to the nutritional values which can give added value to the final gluten-free pasta product. This study reports the effects of the level of egg and soy protein fortification on the physicochemical properties of banana pasta. To the best our knowledge, there is no study which tried to develop banana pasta with protein addition alone such as soy protein isolate or egg protein powder.