Effect of Single‐Pass and Multipass Milling Systems on Whole Wheat Durum Flour and Whole Wheat Pasta Quality

Abstract

Single‐pass and multipass milling systems were evaluated for the quality of whole wheat durum flour (WWF) and the subsequent whole wheat (WW) spaghetti they produced. The multipass system used a roller mill with two purifiers to produce semolina and bran/germ and shorts (bran fraction). The single‐pass system used an ultracentrifugal mill with two configurations (fine grind, 15,000 rpm with 250 μm mill screen aperture; and coarse grind, 12,000 rpm with 1,000 μm mill screen aperture) to direct grind durum wheat grain into WWF or to regrind the bran fraction, which was blended with semolina to produce a reconstituted WWF. Particle size, starch damage, and pasting properties were similar for direct finely ground WWF and multipass reconstituted durum flour/fine bran blend and for direct coarsely ground WWF and multipass reconstituted semolina/coarse bran blend. The semolina/fine bran blend had low starch damage and had desirable pasting properties for pasta cooking. WW spaghetti was better when made with WWF produced using the multipass than single‐pass milling system. Mechanical strength was greatest with spaghetti made from the semolina/fine bran or durum flour/fine bran blends. The semolina/fine bran and semolina/coarse bran blends made spaghetti with high cooked firmness and low cooking loss.