EFFECT OF EMULSIFIERS AND FUNGAL α‐AMYLASE ON RHEOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF WHEAT DOUGH AND QUALITY OF FLAT BREAD

Abstract

ABSTRACT Teftoon, a flat bread made of whole wheat flour, is prepared by hand sheeting of dough, followed by baking. Different emulsifiers, like lecithin, E471 (distilled monoglyceride) and E472 (diacetylated tartaric acid esters of mono‐ and digelycerid of fatty acids), were added to the flour at various levels ranging between 0.25 and 1.0% w/w, and it was observed that they improved the dough characteristics. Improvement in bread quality parameters, such as force to tear and sensory acceptability, were monitored. Fungalα‐amylase was also incorporated into the flour at 5–20 g/100 kg flour basis alone and in combination with the emulsifier. The force required to tear the fresh bread was decreased with emulsifier and enzyme addition; however, E472 addition at 0.75% w/w of whole wheat flour gave the softest bread. The tear force of stored bread significantly increased with storage; however, bread containing E472 showed a less increase in tear force up to a period of 3 days. The sensory acceptability was found to be higher than that of the control bread for emulsifiers, and lower for enzyme at a concentration higher than 10 g/kg flour.PRACTICAL APPLICATIONSFlat bread is normally consumed fresh, but the staling phenomenon starts immediately after baking this kind of bread. Today, large‐scale production and increased consumer demands for high‐quality bread with long shelf life have created the need for functional food additives such as emulsifiers and α‐amylase enzyme. Incorporation of emulsifiers and enzyme decreased the hardness of Taftoon bread. Emulsifiers and α‐amylase enzyme enhanced the flat bread dough quality. The sensory acceptability also improved with the addition of emulsifiers. Optimizing the amount of emulsifiers and enzyme required for reduction of bread hardness is vital because the quality and price of the final product depend on this parameter.