Abstract
The objective of this research was to determine the best combination of extrusion process variables for the production of a high antioxidant extruded amaranth flour (EAF) suitable to elaborate a nutraceutical beverage. Extrusion operation conditions were obtained from a factorial combination of process variables: Extrusion temperature (ET, 70℃ - 130?℃) and screw speed (SS, 100 - 220 rpm). Response surface methodology was employed as optimization technique; both the numeric and graphical methods were applied to obtain maximum values for response variables [Antioxidant capacity (AoxC) and water solubility index (WSI)]. The best combination of extrusion process variables was: Extrusion tem- perature (ET) = 130℃/Screw speed (SS) = 124 rpm. The raw amaranth flour (RAF) and optimized extruded amaranth flour (EAF) had an antioxidant activity of 3475 and 3903 μmol Trolox equivalents/100 g sample (dw), respectively. A 200 mL portion of the beverage prepared with 22 g of optimized EAF contained 3.16 g proteins, 1.09 g lipids, 17.39 g carbohydrates and 92 kcal. This portion covers 25.3% and 16.9% of the daily protein requirements for children 1-3 and 4 - 8 years old, respectively. A 200 mL portion of the beverage from optimized EAF contributes with 15.5% - 25.5% of the recommended daily intake for antioxidants, respectively. The nutraceutical beverage was evaluated with an average acceptability of 8.4 (level of satisfaction between “I like it” and “I like it extremely”) and could be used for health promotion and disease prevention as an alternative to beverages with low nutritional/nutraceutical value.
Highlights
Amaranth is an herbaceous annual plant belonging to the Amaranthaceae family, originally from the Tehuacán region (Mexico) and parts of South America
The objective of this research was to determine the best combination of extrusion process variables for the production of a high antioxidant extruded amaranth flour (EAF) suitable to elaborate a nutraceutical beverage
Analysis of variance showed that antioxidant capacity (AoxC) was significantly dependent on linear terms of extrusion temperature [Extrusion temperature (ET), p < 0.01], and screw speed [Screw speed (SS), p < 0.05)], quadratic terms of ET and SS [(ET)2, p < 0.01; (SS)2, p < 0.05], and ET-SS interaction [ET-SS, p < 0.05]
Summary
Amaranth is an herbaceous annual plant belonging to the Amaranthaceae family, originally from the Tehuacán region (Mexico) and parts of South America. In pre-Colombian times amaranth seeds were such an essential product for the local diet that they became an integral part of pagan rituals and legends. With the decline of local cultures after Spanish colonization, amaranth fell into disuse or was even prohibited. Some small communities continued to cultivate it and enabled it to survive and spread around the world. At present amaranth is grown for commercial purposes in Mexico, South America, the United States, China, Poland and Austria. The genus Amaranthus includes about 60 species, but only 3 are considered good seed producers: A
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