Soy okara is a by‐product of soybean processing which offers immense potential to be incorporated into the diverse food products due to its high nutritional and biological significance. The current research aimed to examine the impact of varying soy okara contents (10%–50%) on physicochemical attributes, in vitro protein digestibility, and glycaemic index (GI) of microwave processed durum wheat semolina pasta. Total phenolic content and antioxidant activity improved when 50% of soy okara was added (158.37 ± 0.40 to 232.90 ± 0.85 mg GAE/100 g and 10.87 ± 0.10%–56.21 ± 0.05%). The GI of enriched samples was significantly lower than control pasta (27.41 ± 0.05–12.38 ± 0.01). Fourier transfer infrared spectroscopy revealed no structural changes between control and soy okara‐fortified pasta. Studies indicated that pasta enriched with soy okara has the potential to be commercialized on the industrial level to develop nutritional enriched functional pasta. Practical applications Current research reports the effect of incorporation of soy okara on physicochemical properties, in vitro digestibility, and structural attributes of functional pasta. Enriched pasta showed an improved antioxidant profile with the satisfactory organoleptic score. Hypoglycaemic effect of enriched pasta suggested that soy okara could be used to make the functional pasta which has potential to provide various health benefits. Findings of this work will promote the effective utilization of soy okara in pasta formulation with a high level of protein and fiber.

Central composite design was employed to optimize the cooking, textural and overall acceptability score of the instant dried noodles prepared with multigrain flour and gluten incorporation. Sorghum flour (X 1 , 10-50%), soy flour (X 2 , 10-20%) and gluten (X 3 , 2-4%) were the independent variables investigated with respect to five response variables including cooking time (Y 1), cooked weight (Y 2), cooking loss (Y 3), hardness (Y 4) and overall acceptability (Y 5). The optimum level was found to be 24.61% sorghum, 13.23% soy and 2.95% gluten resulting in cooking time = 9 ± 0.60 min, cooked weight = 17.30 ± 0.17 g, cooking loss = 11.46 ± 0.64 g/100 g, hardness = 36.65 ± 3.2 N with overall acceptability score of 7.3 ± 0.71, respectively. Optimized noodles showed higher ash (3.40 ± 0.11%), protein (16.63 ± 0.55%), fiber (4.78 ± 0.04%) as well as iron content (4.53 ± 0.02 mg/ 100 g) than the control (0.83 ± 0.02%, 13.13 ± 0.84%, 0.00 and 2.38 mg/100 g) and Maggie noodles (3.19 ± 0.01%, 10.53 ± 0.30%, 0.41 ± 0.50% and 0.22 ± 0.00 mg/100 g) made with refined wheat flour. Optimized noodles also revealed good total phenolic content (84.57 ± 1.42 mg GAE/100 g DW) and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl scavenging activity (19.64 ± 0.20%). Hence, optimized noodles have substantial potential as a protein-fiber-rich complementary food to improve the nutrient delivery of midday meal scheme and satisfying the protein requirement of primary class children (12 g/ child/day) as laid down by MHRD (India) under the scheme.

Okara is a by‐product of soymilk production with a rich nutritional profile, particularly in proteins, fibers, lipids, and bioactive components. Okara has the potential for value‐added production and utilization—choices that, at the same time, deliver on the promise of increased economic advantages along with a reduction in environmental pollution. Research on bioactive constituents, in vitro digestibility and structural aspects (microstructure and infrared spectroscopy) suggests its potential as an ingredient with high bioactive components and digestibility score, along with varied structural strength, which may be of great importance to the food industry while developing new products with okara integration. Further, various food formulations made from the addition of okara flour also suggested the potential of this low‐cost waste ingredient to enhance the nutritional value and address the various health‐related issues such as obesity, diabetes and hyperlipidemia diseases. Therefore, this mini review summarizes the existing literature with a view to establish an extensive knowledge base for the composition and utilization of okara. In addition, structural and digestibility aspects of okara are also highlighted as they may determine the quality and acceptability of the product.

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A central composite design was used to optimize flour combination consisting of sorghum flour (20%–35%), finger millet flour (10%–25%) and gluten (3%–5%) on five responses, namely cooking loss (CL), cooking time (CT), water absorption index (WAI), firmness, and overall acceptability (OA) of multigrain pasta. The optimized pasta was evaluated for physicochemical, antioxidant/anti‐nutritional, in vitro protein digestibility (IVPD), and structural attributes. Optimum level for sorghum, finger millet, and gluten were 31.96%, 13.04%, and 3.40%, respectively, resulted in CL = 9.69 ± 0.44%, CT = 6.10 ± 0.05 min, WAI = 119.54 ± 2.54%, firmness = 11.05 ± 2.40 N, and OA = 7.30 ± 0.20. The antioxidant analysis showed higher in 1,1‐diphenyl‐2‐picrylhydrazyl activity, ferric reducing power and (2,2‐azino‐bis‐3‐ethylbenzothiazoline‐6‐sulfonic acid) activity of optimized pasta. IVPD of optimized pasta (76.51%) altered significantly compared to control pasta (89.69%). However, FTIR and XRD pattern revealed a similar secondary structure for both types of pasta. Practical applications The growing interest toward consumption of nutritionally enriched healthy foods has promoted the cereal industry toward formulations of millet‐based products. However, the quality characteristics of both sorghum and finger millet‐based pasta have been poorly investigated. Higher total phenolic content and antioxidant activity suggested that both sorghum and finger millet could be used to make the pasta having numerous health benefits. Findings of this work may promote the effective utilization of multigrain flour in pasta or other food products which further offer the advantages of a reduced burden on traditional crops, inspiring the agriculture produce and lessen the cost of the final product.