Research and Development

Research and Development

Increasing competition and the motivation for survival has pushed organizations to concentrate their activities on main products and core capabilities, which requires investment in research and technological innovation. Doing research in organizations is aimed at supporting innovation and R&D should create new business opportunities or transform the current business of the organization. Today, R&D has a direct impact on innovation, productivity, quality, standard of living, market share, and other factors that are effective in increasing the competitive ability of organizations.  

Papers

  • Marine foods as functional ingredients in bakery and pasta products

    S.U. Kadam, P. Prabhasankar

    Flour Milling, Baking and Confectionery Technology Department, Central Food Technological Research Institute, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Mysore-570020, India Food Research International 43 (2010) 1975–1980

    Marine food, due to its phenomenal biodiversity is a treasure house of many novel healthy food ingredients and biologically active compounds as fish oils, fish proteins, bioactive peptides, seaweeds, macroalgae and microalgae. Despite having so much health benefits, marine functional ingredients have been under exploited for food purposes. functional food affect beneficially one or more target functions in the body, beyond adequate nutritional effects, in a way that is relevant to either and an improved state of health and well-being and/or reduction in risk of disease” (Ross,2000).

    Marine foods contain many chemical compounds with neutraceutical potential
    1) Particular components are directly connected with well-defined physiological effects and the health benefit is linked to a single product, thus it is expensive affair.
    2) It creates novelty in food without necessarily changing the sensory properties of food.
    3) As the manufacture of functional food, this component needs to be added, removed or modified it is perceived as less natural product to consumer (Urala, & Lahteenmaki, 2004).


    2. Marine food: current status

    As people become increasingly aware of the relation between diet and good health, the consumption of fishery products will most likely increase. The consumer recognizes that fish and shellfish are nutritious and wholesome foods. They are perceived as an excellent source of high quality protein, containing lipids with high levels of unsaturated fatty acids, and perhaps contributing to the enhancement of human health by reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease. Likewise, seafood is characteristically tender, easily digested, and a good source of many important minerals. Marine food sources have found enormous compounds, which are good for health and are having neutraceutical value. These include omega-3 oils, chitin and chitosan, fish protein hydrolysates, algal constituents, carotenoids, antioxidants, fish processing by-products such as fish bone, shark cartilage, taurine and bioactive compounds. Omega-3 oils are much popular and extensively used than any other ingredients of marine source. Chitin and chitosan are polysaccharides, which are gaining much attention. Fish protein hydrolyzates are enzyme hydrolysis products of fish proteins. Algae and seaweed have been found to be good source of dietary fibre and antioxidants and carotenoids on other hand fish bone and shark cartilage are extensively used as source of calcium.


    3. Obstacles and challenges in food application

    There are various challenges ahead for use of marine functional ingredients in daily diet. These include pollution of seafood with various hazardous components as industrial waste, metals etc., sensory changes in the product with incorporation of marine food and changes in physicochemical properties of food.


    4. Pasta and bakery industry

    Pasta is an Italian word to describe a cooked, extruded and dried wheat product. The usual basic ingredients are wheat flour or semolina and water. The nearly ubiquitous consumption of cereals all over the world gives cereals an important position in international nutrition. Besides the high starch content as energy source, cereals provide dietary fibre, nutritious protein and lipids rich in essential fatty acids. Important micronutrients present in cereals are vitamins, especially many B vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and phytochemicals.


    5. Nature of marine functional ingredients

    In the above context potential exists for exploitation of marine foods as functional ingredients such as chitin, chitosan, omega-3 oils, seaweed, algae and microalgae, carotenoids, vitamins and minerals, shark cartilage and calcium in fish bone, bioactive peptides, fish protein hydrolyzates and taurine, a brief about these is given below. Table 1 summarizes marine functional ingredients, sources and potential health benefits.

    Table 1: Marine functional ingredients and potential health benefits

    5.1. Chitin: Chitin and chitosan polymers have unique structures properties, highly sophisticated functions and wide ranging applications in variety of fields such as agricultural, chemistry, medicine, biotechnology, the pulp and paper industry, cosmetics, water treatment and foods (Chandy & Sharma, 1990). Chitosan is approved for use as a food additive or dietary supplement in countries such as Japan, England, USA, Italy, Portugal, and Finland. Chitin and chitosan have a variety of nutraceutical applications, including immune-enhancement, disease recovery, and use as dietary fibre.

    5.2. Omega-3 fatty acids: Lipids contribute to food quality by providing flavor, aroma, colour, texture, taste, and nutritive value. From the nutritional point of view, lipids function as sources of metabolic energy, carrier of fat-soluble vitamins (e.g., A, D, E, and K), and contribute to the formation of cell and tissue membranes (Dyerberg et al., 1975). Omega-3 oils are incorporated in bakery products, pastas, dairy products such as milk, yogurt and juice as well as nutrition bars. Park, Choi, and Kim (2000) reported that fish oil had a protective effect against cardiovascular disease. The ability ofω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids tomodulate tumor-cell growth was demonstrated for EPA by Chiu and Wan (1999).

    Omega fatty acids have potential application in health promotion; prevention from atherosclerosis, protection against arrhythmias, reduce blood pressure, beneficial for diabetic patients, fight against manic-depressive illness, reduce symptoms in asthma patients, protection against chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases, alleviation of symptoms of cystic fibrosis, prevent various cancers, provide bone health, and improve brain functions in children.

    5.3. Seaweed: Seaweed contains a significant amount of soluble polysaccharides, and has potential function as dietary fibre. The seaweed polysaccharides possess a higher Water Holding Capacity (WHC) than cellulosic fibres. There is an interest in seaweed hydrocolloids for human nutrition as they can act as dietary fibre, their physiological effects being closely related to their physicochemical properties such as solubility, viscosity, hydration, and ion-exchange capacities in the digestive tract (Lahaye & Kaeffer, 1997). Seaweed is a source of biologically active phytochemicals, which include carotenoids, phycobilins, fatty acids, polysaccharides, vitamins, sterols, tocopherol, phycocyanins among others. Many of these compounds have been recognized to possess biological activity and hence beneficial for use in human and animal healthcare. Seaweed as a source of bioactive compounds is helpful as; antioxidant activity, antibacterial and, antitumor activity.

    5.4. Microalgae: Microalgae can be used to enhance the nutritional value of food and animal feed, they play a crucial role in aquaculture and they can be incorporated into cosmetics (Spolaore, Joannis-Cassan, Duran, & Isambert, 2006). Microalgae are also rich in pigments like chlorophyll and carotenoids. These molecules have a wide range of commercial applications (Becker, 1988). However, prior to commercialization, algal material must be analyzed for the presence of toxic compounds to prove their harmlessness (Metting, 1996).

    5.5. Polysaccharides: Algae have mainly been used in western countries as raw material to extract alginates (from brown algae) and carragenates (from red algae). Algae also contain multitude of bioactive compounds that might have antioxidant, antibacterial, antiviral and anti carcinogenic properties. Consumption of dietary fibre has a positive influence on several aspects related to health such as reducing the risk of suffering from colon cancer, constipation, hypercholesterolemia, obesity and diabetes. Besides, many constituents of dietary fibre show antioxidant activity as well as immunological activity (Suzuki et al., 2004).

    5.6. Carotenoids: The carotenoids, found in nature, can be classified into two: hydrocarbons, such as β-carotene, xanthophylls, and the oxygenated derivatives of carotenes such as astacene, astaxanthin, canthaxanthin, cryptoxanthin, lutein, neoxanthin, and zeaxanthin. The two main carotenoids, astaxanthin and canthaxanthin are extracted from crab and shrimp processing. Their highly antioxidative properties make them candidates as functional food ingredients. Astaxanthin may have a use as an anti-aging compound, whilst canthaxanthin could contribute to treatments for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, high cholesterol, strokes and cancer (Miyashita & Hosokawa, 2008). Crabs are important crustaceans, in which carotenoids occur. Astaxanthin is a very potent antioxidant. Several studies have shown that its activity can be several folds higher than that of other antioxidants, for example B-carotene and Vitamin E. The powerful antioxidant activity also can play a role in astaxanthin's enhancement of immune responses, liver function and eye, joint, prostate, and heart health.

    5.7. Vitamins and minerals:Marine fish oils are rich sources of vitamins A, D, and E. Vitamin A is concentrated mostly in fish liver oils. Halibut and cod liver oils are rich sources of vitamins A and D. Sardine fish contains up to 4500 IU of The vitamin A found in small fish species and amounts of vitamin D in their tissues.

    5.8. Calcium and fish bone:Fish bone is considered as a potential source of calcium. Fish bone material derived from processing of large fish is a useful calcium source. To use fish bone as a calcium fortificant, the bone should be converted into an edible form by softening its structure. Fish bone powder is a potential value-added by-product of the tuna processing industry.

    5.9. Bio-active peptides: Fish and other foods are known to contain anti-hypertensive peptides known as angiotensin I converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors (Ono, 2003). These bioactive components are found in the muscle flesh of various species (Matsumoto, 1994).

    5.10. Fish protein hydrolyzate: Hydrolyzates are defined as proteins that are chemically or biologically broken down to peptides of varying sizes. Fish protein hydrolyzates (FPH) are prepared by digestion of fish meat by proteolytic enzymes and have been considered as an alternative approach for converting underutilized fish biomass into edible protein products.

    5.11. Taurine: Fish is a good source of taurine a conditionally essential amino acid and is one of the most abundant free amino acids in many tissues, including skeletal and cardiac muscle and the brain. The potential use of taurine to reduce blood pressure, improve cardiac performance and reduce blood cholesterol levels (Gormley, 2006).


    6. Application in pasta products

    Pasta is a complex multi component system consisting of bio macromolecules such as proteins, carbohydrates and lipids (Kill, 2001). Pasta is a source of carbohydrates. Wakame (U. pinnatifida), one of the widely consumed brown seaweed is rich in fucoxanthin (Miyashita, & Hosokawa, 2008). Fucoxanthin is a xanthophyll characteristic of brown seaweed and is the most abundant among aquatic carotenoids accounting for more than 10% of estimated total natural production of carotenoids. Prabhasankar, Ganesan, and Bhaskar (2009a) developed pasta with Indian brown seaweed (S. marginatum) as an ingredient to improve the biofunctional and nutritional qualities. Different levels of seaweed (1.0, 2.5, and 5.0%; w/w) were substituted to obtain seaweed-incorporated pasta. Microstructure studies revealed that the incorporation of seaweed up to 2.5% enhanced gluten network of pasta. But it was also found that antioxidant property of pasta did not increase with increase in seaweed concentration beyond 2.5%. Replacing pasta ingredients with wakame powder considerably improved the protein and fat contents (pb0.05). Likewise, increased levels of wakame powder significantly increased the ash and fibre contents of pasta (p˂0.05). Increased levels of seaweed incorporations increased the fucoxanthin (0.02–0.23 mg/g) contents in seaweed pasta samples.

    Sensory analysis of different pasta samples revealed that pasta samples containing seaweed powder up to 10% had higher acceptance rating by the panelists. In case of pasta samples containing 20% and 30%wakame powder, panelists complained of saltiness as well as they feel similar to that of eating wakame. Also, 30% seaweed containing pasta was not preferred sensorily as indicated by the lower scores for appearance and mouth feel. Hence, it was concluded that wakame powder up to 10% is better both in terms of sensory characteristics and additional nutritional value (Prabhasankar et al., 2009b). Pasta is excellent choice for incorporating microencapsulated nutraceuticals such as powder encapsulated refinedmarine oil (ROPUFA10 n−3 food powder) because it is popular with consumers due to it is easy handling, storage and preparation. It was also found that microencapsulated integrator allows the preparation of spaghetti characterized by added nutritional value maintaining a high sensory acceptability.

    The physical, chemical, sensory and nutritional qualities of pasta were alteredwith incorporation of surimi in semolina. They determined the concentration of surimi to be incorporated so that product becomes more consumers acceptable. They used formulations of pasta with 0, 10, 20 and 30% levels of surimi. Table 3 summarizes different marine functional ingredients incorporated in pasta products (Huang & Resurreccion, 1988).

    Table 2: Marine functional ingredients and their use in pasta products


    Conclusions

    Marine food, due to its phenomenal biodiversity, is treasure house of many novel healthy food ingredients and biologically active compounds such as fish oils, fish proteins, and seaweeds. Marine functional ingredients such as fish oils, seaweeds and fish proteins have found application in bakery, dairy, confectionary and pasta products. As bakery industry has come out of its image as wheat based product industry, fish oils which are rich in omega-3 oils are widely and extensively used in bread and other products. Recent advances and research have shown that seaweed can be used as a rich source of carotenoids such as astaxanthin, fucoxanthin and dietary fibre and can be incorporated in pasta products without much intervention in sensory quality. Thus, constant efforts in research and development in the field of marine functional food ingredients is needed for the future diet which will help in reducing all health problems of human beings.


    References:


    1. S.U. Kadam, P. Prabhasankar.(2010) Flour Milling, Baking and Confectionery Technology Department, Central Food Technological Research Institute, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Mysore-570020, India . food research International, 43, 1975-1980.
    2. Becker, E. W. (1988). Micro-algae for human and animal consumption. In M. A. Borowitzka, & L. J. Borowitzka (Eds.), Micro-algal biotechnology (pp. 222−256). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
    3. Bhaskar, N., Ganesan, P., & Kumar, C. S. (2008). Antioxidant properties of methanol extract and its solvent fractions obtained from selected Indian red seaweeds. Bioresource Technology, 99, 2717−2723.
    4. Chandy, T., & Sharma, C. P. (1990). Chitosan — As a biomaterial. Biomaterial Artif Cells Artif Organs, 18, 1−24.
    5. Chen, L., & Subirade, M. (2005). Chitosan/β-lactoglobulin core–shell nanoparticles as nutraceutical carriers. Biomaterials, 46, 6041−6053.
    6. Chiu, L. C. M., & Wan, J. M. F. (1999). Induction of apoptosis in HL-60 cells by eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) is associated with downregulation of Bcl-2 expression. Cancer, 145, 17−27.
    7. Conquer, J. A., & Holub, B. J. (1998). Effect of supplementation with different doses of DHA on the levels of circulating DHA as non-esterified fatty acids in subjects of Asian Indian background. Journal of Lipid Research, 39, 286−292.
    8. Dyerberg, J., Baug, H. O., & Hjourne, N. (1975). Fatty acid composition of plasma lipids in greenland Eskimos. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 28, 958−966.
    9. Gormley, R. (2006). Fish as a functional food. Proceedings of the Functional Food Network Conference, Turku, Finland, March 8–10.
    10. Guarda, A., Rosell, C. M., Benedito, C., & Galotto, M. J. (2004). Different hydrocolloids as bread improvers and antistaling agents. Food Hydrocolloids, 18, 241−247.
    11. Harrison, R. A., Sagara, M., Rajpura, A., Armitage, L., Birt, N., Birt, C. A., et al. (2004). Can foods with added soya-protein or fish-oil reduce risk factors for coronary disease? A factorial randomised controlled trial. Nutrition, Metabolism, and Cardiovascular Diseases, 14, 344−350.
    12. Hosakawa, M., Bhaskar, N., Sashima, T., & Miyashita, K. (2006). Fucoxanthin as a bioactive and nutritionally beneficial marine carotenoid: A review. Carotenoid Science, 10(1), 15−28.
    13. Huang, Y., & Resurreccion, A. V. A. (1988). Consumer acceptance of pasta supplemented with surimi.
    14. Iafelice, G., Caboni, M. F., Cubadda, R., Di Criscio, T., Trivisonno, M. C., & Marconi, E. (2008). Development of functional spaghetti enriched with long chain omega-3 fatty acids. Cereal Chemistry, 85, 146−151.
    15. Ikeda, K., Kitamura, A., Machida, H., Watanabe, M., Negishi, H., & Hiraoka, J. (2003). Effect of Undaria pinnatifida (Wakame) on the development of cerebrovascular diseases in stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats. Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology & Physiology, 30, 44−48.
    16. Kill R. C. (2001). Introduction, In Pasta and Semolina Technology. In R. C. Kill, & K Turnbull (Eds.), UK: Blackwell Sciences Ltd.
    17. Kristinsson, H. G., & Rasco, B. A. (2000). Fish protein hydrolysates: Production, biochemical and functional properties. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, 32, 1−39.
    18. Lahaye, M., & Kaeffer, B. (1997). Seaweed dietary fibers: structure, physicochemical, and biological properties relevant to intestinal physiology. Science Aliments, 17, 563.
    19. Liu, M., Wallin, R., & Saldeen, T. (2001). Effect of bread containing fish oil on plasma phospholipid fatty acids, triglycerides, HDL-cholesterol, and malondialdehyde in subjects with hyperlipidemia. Nutrition Research, 21, 1403−1410.
    20. Loffler, A. (1986). Proteolytic enzymes: sources and applications. Food Technology, 40, 63−68.
    21. Lokesh, B. R., Diwakar, B. T., Dutta, P. K., & Naidu, K. A. (2008). Bio-availability and metabolism of n−3 fatty acid rich garden cress (Lepidium sativum) seed oil in albino rats. Prostaglandins, 78, 123−130.
    22. Mansour, M. P. (1999). Very long-chain (C28) highly unsaturated fatty acids in marine dinoflagellates. Phytochemistry, 50, 541−548.
    23. Matsumoto, K. (1994). Separation and purification of angiotensin I-converting enzyme inhibitory peptide in peptic hydrolyate of oyster. Nippon Shokuhin Kogyo Gakkaishi, 41, 589−594.
    24. Metting, F. B. (1996). Biodiversity and application of microalgae. Journal of Industrial Microbiology, 17, 477−489.
    25. Miyashita, K., & Hosokawa, M. (2008). Beneficial health effects of seaweed carotenoid, fucoxanthin in marine nutraceuticals and functional foods. In C. Barrow, & F.Shahidi (Eds.), Boca Raton, USA: CRC Press 297-320.
    26. Neilsen, H. (1992). n−3 polyunsaturated fish fatty acids in a fish-oil-supplemented bread. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, 59, 559−562.
    27. Olaizola, M. (2008). The production and health benefits of astaxanthin. In C. Barrow, & F. Shahidi (Eds.), Marine nutraceuticals and functional foods (pp. 321−344). Boca Raton, USA: CRC Press.
    28. Ono, S. (2003). Isolation of peptides with angiotensin I-converting enzyme inhibitory effect derived from hydrolyzate of upstream chum salmon muscle. Journal of Food Science, 68, 1611.
    29. Park, H. S., Choi, J. S., & Kim, K. H. (2000). Docosahexaenoic acid-rich fish oil and pectin have a hypolipidemic effect, but pectin increases risk factor for colon cancer in rats. Nutrition Research, 20, 1783−1794.
    30. Plaza, M., Cifuentes, A., & Ibanez, E. (2008). In the search of new functional food ingredients from algae. Trends Food Science and Technology, 19, 31.
    31. Prabhasankar, P., Ganesan, P., & Bhaskar, N. (2009a). Influence of Indian brown seaweed (Sargassum marginatum) as an ingredient on quality, biofunctional and microstructure characteristics of pasta. Food Science and Technology International.
    32. Prabhasankar, P., Ganesan, P., Bhaskar, N., Hirose, A., Stephen, N., Gowda, L. R., et al. (2009b). Edible Japanese seaweed, wakame (Undaria pinnatifida) as an ingredient in pasta: Chemical, functional and structural evaluation. Food Chemistry, 115, 501−508.
    33. Ross, S. (2000). Functional foods: The Food and Drug Administration perspective. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 71, 1735S−1738S.
    34. Sachindra, N. M., Bhaskar, N., & Mahendrakar, N. S. (2005). Carotenoids in crabs from marine and fresh waters of India. LWT- Food Science and Technology, 38, 221−225.
    35. Saldeen, T., Wallin, R., & Marklinder, I. (1998). Effects of a small dose of stable fish oil substituted for margarine in bread on plasma phospholipid fatty acids and serum triglycerides. Nutrition Research, 18, 1483−1492.
    36. Shungan, X. (1996). Calcium powder of freshwater fish bone. Journal of Shanghai Fishery University, 5, 246.
    37. Spolaore, P., Joannis-Cassan, C., Duran, E., & Isambert, A. (2006). Commercial applications of microalgae. Journal of Bioscience and Bioengineering, 101, 87−96.
    38. Suzuki, N., Fujimura, A., Nagai, T., Mizumoto, I., Itami, T., & Hatate, H. (2004). Antioxidative activity of animal and vegetable dietary fibers. Biofactors, 21, 329−333.
    39. Urala, N., & Lahteenmaki, L. (2004). Attitudes behind consumers' willingness to use functional foods. Food Quality and Preference, 15, 793−798.
    40. Verardo, V., Ferioli, F., Riciputi, Y., Iafelice, G., Marconi, E., & Caboni, M. F. (2009). Evaluation of lipid oxidation in spaghetti pasta enriched with long chain n−3 nsaturated fatty acids under different storage conditions. Food Chemistry, 114, 472−477.
    41. Volkman, J. K. (1999). Australasian research on marine natural products: Chemistry, bioactivity and ecology. Marine Freshwater Research, 50, 761−765.
    42. Ward, O. P., & Singh, A. (2005). Omega-3/6 fatty acids: Alternative sources of production. Process biochemistry, 40, 3627−3652.
    43. Yan N. (2003). Encapsulated agglomeration of microcapsules and their preparation, US Patent 6,974, 592 B2.
    44. Yep, Y., Li, D., Mann, N., Bode, O., & Sinclair, A. (2002). Bread enriched with microencapsulated tuna oil increases plasma docosahexaenoic acid and total omega-3 fatty acids in humans. Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 11, 285−291.
    45. Young, G., & Conquer, J. (2008). Omega-3s and their impact on Brain Health. In C. Barrow, & F. Shahidi (Eds.), Marine nutraceuticals and functional foods (pp. 63−88). Boca Raton, USA: CRC Press.

  • Influence of drying temperature on the spaghetti cooking quality

    A. Baiano, A. Conte, M.A. Del Nobile

    Department of Food Science, University of Foggia, Via Napoli, 25-71100 Foggia, Italy Istituto per la Ricerca e le Applicazioni Biotecnologiche per la Sicurezza e la Valorizzazione dei Prodotti Tipici e di Qualita`, Universita` degli Studi di Foggia, Via Napoli, 25-71100 Foggia, Italy Received 5 November 2004; accepted 19 May 2005

    Pasta is a traditional product generally obtained from semolina that is considered the best raw material (Malcolmson, Matsuo, & Balshaw, 1993). Non-durum wheat flour contains gluten not comparable to that of semolina neither for quantity nor for quality. The quality of raw materials affects in a great exten-sion the pasta cooking quality that can be evaluated in terms of stickiness, firmness, cooking and overcooking tolerance, water absorption, degree of swelling and loss of solids to cooking water (Manser, 1981)

    The attention of scientists has always been focused on the effects of protein level, gluten content and drying temperature on these characteristics. Malcolmson et al. (1993) found that protein level greatly affect firmness, compressibility and cooking loss of optimally cooked spaghetti, whereas elasticity was mainly related to drying temperature. The use in pasta making of a low gluten content semolina or a semolina flour blend put in evidence the necessity of acting on process parameters, first of all the drying temperature.

    In the present paper Spaghetti were dried at three different temperatures (low, medium and high) and submitted to sensorial analysis in order to evaluate adhesiveness, bulkiness and firmness at the optimum cooking time (8 min).

    Water sorption tests were run at 100 􀀁C and the changes in weight, diameter, and length of spaghetti strands were monitored for 20 min. In addition, stickiness, elastic modulus and loss of amylose were measured. The sensorial characteristics were then correlated with the results of chemical and physical analyses.

    Spaghetti were dried at three different temperatures (60 °C, 70 °C and 100 °C). Results pointed out that spaghetti dried at high temperature have the highest firmness and the lowest stickiness. The application of high drying temperature at the beginning of the drying cycle did not improve the pasta cooking quality due to both the premature denaturation of gluten and starch gelatinization (Manser, 1980).

    The best results were obtained by applying a preliminary low drying temperature to reduce the pasta moisture, followed by a high drying temperature (Resmini & Pagani, 1983).

    According to different authors, (Abecassis, Chaurand, Metencio, & Feillet, 1989; Abecassis, Faure, & Feillet, 1989), high drying temperature improved spaghetti cooking quality even if high drying temperature carried out at high pasta moisture could determine an excessive swelling of starch granules with the consequent break down of the protein network and a decrease in the cooking performance (Resmini, Pagani, & Dalbon, 1988).

    D Egidio and Nardi (1991) concluded that high drying temperature (90 °C) improved organoleptic characteristics, reducing stickiness and bulkiness and increasing firmness of the cooking pasta.

    Grant, Dick, and Shelton (1993) found that high drying temperature increased amylose content in cooked spaghetti and thus decreased the amylose percentage in the cooking water. Since drying determines conformational changes in starch granules and starch amounts to about 65% of the semolina dry matter, high and very high temperature drying improves the pasta cooking quality (Gu¨ler, Ko¨ksel, & Ng, 2002; Yue, Rayas-Duarte, & Elias, 1999).

    The investigated different drying temperatures did not affect the volume fraction of starch crystalline domain. The results of the panel test, performed at the optimum cooking time (8 min , that is 480 s) are reported in Table 1.

    Table 1: Results of the panel test on a 1 (very bad)–9 (very good) scale

    As expected an overall increase in the spaghetti cooking quality with the drying temperature was observed.


    Water sorption kinetics:

    Water sorption test were run at 100°C on the three investigated spaghetti. Weight, length and diameter were monitored during cooking. Results point out that there is a significant difference between the spaghetti dried at 90°C and those dried at low and medium temperature. In particular, the HTS sample showed a lower elongation at the optimal cooking time if compared to MTS and LTS samples. The trend observed for the samples diameter is in agreement with those of length and weight.

    The above results suggest that bulkiness and adhesiveness (panel test), which are strictly related to spaghetti stickiness, are well correlated to the water absorbed by starch during cooking.

    Pasta dried at high temperature absorbs at the optimal cooking time less water than those dried at low and medium temperature thanks to the gluten network that made starch less available to imbibition. The elastic modulus of the investigated spaghetti decreased as the cooking time increased. This is due to water absorption in spaghetti, which plasticizing the protein and starch matrices reduces the elastic modulus of the spaghetti strand. In particular, at a cooking time of 8 min, the HTS and MTS samples showed the highest elastic modulus followed by the LTS one. The differences among the elastic modulus of the HTS and MTS samples values are negligible, as also confirmed by panelists, who found a firmness equal to 5 for MTS and HTS samples and equal for 4 to the LTS one.

    Table 2 reports the results of the measurements of the instrumental stickiness performed on the investigated spaghetti at the optimum cooking time and after 15 min of cooking.

    Table 2: Stickiness of the three kinds of spaghetti at 8 and 15 min of cooking

    As expected stickiness increased with the cooking time


    Conclusions

    Three kinds of spaghetti have been produced from a mixture of semolina and wheat flour in order to emphasize the effect of the different temperatures. Spaghetti were then dried at 60, 70 and 100 °C.

    The different temperatures of drying did not affect the crystallinity level, suggesting that drying did not induce starch gelatinization.

    According to the panel test, bulkiness and adhesiveness decreased as drying temperature increased. HTS samples were less sticky than the other. This behavior could be explained considering that the gluten network is better formed at the highest temperature and allows starch to absorb water in a minor amount as also demonstrated by the low change in weight, length and diameter.

    According to this result, HTS samples released a lower amylose amount than the other investigated samples.

    The elastic modulus increased with the increase in drying temperature. In conclusion, as expected the quality characteristics of pasta during cooking improved as drying temperature increased. In particular, HTS samples significantly differed from those dried at low and medium temperature.

    Instead, there were not any significant difference between samples dried at low temperature and samples dried at medium temperature.


    References:


    1. AACC, (2000). American Association of Cereal Chemists, International approved methods. 38-12A (10th ed.), St. Paul, MN, USA.
    2. Abecassis, J., Chaurand, M., Metencio, F., & Feillet, P. (1989). Einfluss des wassergahaltes der teigwaren bei der hochtemperaturtrocknung. Getreide Mehl und Brot, 43, 58.
    3. Abecassis, J., Faure, J., & Feillet, P. (1989). Improvement of cooking quality of maize pasta products by heat treatment. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, 47(4), 475–485.
    4. Cubadda, R. (1989). Current research and future needs in durum wheat chemistry and technology. Cereal Foods World, 34(2), 206–209.
    5. D_Egidio, M. G., & Nardi, S. (1991). Effects of a high temperature drying system on pasta quality of durum wheat cultivars. Tecnica Molitoria, 429–434.
    6. Del Nobile, M. A., Buonocore, G. G., Panizza, A., & Gambacorta, G. 2003). Modeling the spaghetti hydration kinetic during cooking and overcooking. Journal of Food Science, 68(4), 1316–1323.
    7. Del Nobile, M. A., & Massera, M. (2002). A method to evaluate the extent of ‘‘residual deformation’’ present in dry spaghetti. Journal of Food Engineering, 55(3), 237–245.
    8. Grant, L. A., Dick, J. W., & Shelton, D. R. (1993). Effects of drying temperature, starch damage, sprouting and additives on spaghetti quality characteristics. Cereal Chemistry, 70(6), 676–684.
    9. Grzybowski, R. A., & Donnely, B. J. (1977). Starch gelatinization in cooked spaghetti. Journal of Food Science, 42(5), 1304–1305.
    10. Gu¨ ler, S., Ko¨ ksel, H., & Ng, P. K. W. (2002). Del Nobile, M. A., & Massera, M. (2002). A method to evaluate the extent of ‘‘residual deformation’’ present in dry spaghetti. Journal of Food Engineering, 55(3), 237–245.
    11. Effects of industrial pasta drying temperatures on starch properties and pasta quality. Food Research International, 35, 421–427.
    12. Malcolmson, L. J., Matsuo, R. R., & Balshaw, R. (1993). Textural optimization of spaghetti using response surface methodology: Effects of drying temperature and durum protein level. Cereal Chemistry, 70(4), 417–423.
    13. Manser, J. (1980). High temperature drying of pasta products. Buhler Diagram, 69, 11.
    14. Manser, J. (1981). Optimale parameter fu¨ r die teigwarenherstellung am beispiel von langwaren. Getreide Mehl Brot, 35(3), 75–83.
    15. Matsuo, R. R., Malcolmson, L. J., Edwards, N. M., & Dexter, J. E. (1992). A colorimetric method for estimating spaghetti cooking losses. Cereal Chemistry, 69(1), 27–29.
    16. Resmini, P., & Pagani, M. A. (1983). Ultrastructure studies of pasta. A review. Food Microstructure, 2(1), 1–12.
    17. Resmini, P., Pagani, M. A., & Dalbon, G. (1988). The influence of raw material characteristics and of pasta-processing conditions on quality of pasta products. Tecnica Molitoria, 39(5), 425–436, 442.
    18. Sharma, R., Sissons, M. J., Rathien, A. J., & Jenner, C. F. (2002). The null-4A allele at the waxy locus in durum wheat affects pasta cooking quality. Journal of Cereal Science, 35, 287–297.
    19. Voisey, P. W., Wasik, R. J., & Loughheed, T. C. (1978). Measuring the texture of cooked spaghetti. II. Exploratory work on instrumental assessment of stickiness and its relationship to microstructure. Canadian Institute of Food Science and Technology Journal, 11(4), 180–188.
    20. Yue, P., Rayas-Duarte, P., & Elias, E. (1999). Effect of drying temperature on physiochemical properties of starch isolated from pasta. Cereal Chemistry, 76, 541–547.