Defining Whole Grain Sorghum Flour and Water Levels to Improve Sensory and Nutritional Quality of Gluten-Free Bread—A Factorial Design Approach

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the potential of white and bronze whole-grain sorghum flour to develop gluten-free bread (GFB) with acceptable sensory properties. Two 22 factorial designs, with two central point repetitions each, were used to study the effects of white (WS) or bronze sorghum (BS) flours and water (W) levels on the physical properties, acceptability scores, and proximate composition of GFB. The WS or BS levels ranged from 50 to 100% when blended with potato starch, and the W levels ranged from 100 to 140% (flour weight basis). Independent of the amount applied, GFB formulations containing BS were well accepted (acceptability scores for appearance, color, odor, texture, flavor and overall liking ≥ 6.29 on a 10 cm hybrid hedonic scale). No significant differences were observed between the acceptability scores of single and composite formulations for all of the evaluated sensory attributes. Moreover, the W levels had no effect on the acceptability of GFB made with BS. Composite formulations prepared with 50 and 75% WS were also well accepted (acceptability scores for appearance, color, odor, texture, flavor, and overall liking ≥ 7.43 on a 10 cm hybrid hedonic scale). However, increased W levels are required in single formulations to increase the scores for texture and overall acceptability. GFB made with 50% and 75% WS/BS can be classified as a source of fiber since the fiber content is higher than 3 g per 100 g, while GFB made with 100% WS/BS can be classified as high in fiber, as the content of this component is higher than 6 g per 100 g. This research highlights the great potential of whole-grain sorghum flours for producing nutrient-dense and acceptable GFB, which is important for consumers who choose or must adhere to a GF diet.

Functionality of pre‐cooked whole‐grain corn, rice and sorghum flours for gluten‐free bread

“…These specific volume values resulted in a high crumb hardness (26.66-45.25 N), which are typical of dense breads compared to those reported by Comettant-Rabanal et al (2021), where researchers used a GF bread formulation with twice the fat and 3 times the amount of yeast. In addition, our results were close to those found by Centeno et al (2021) for sorghum bread and Sandri et al (2017) when incorporating a fibre-rich ingredient such as chia, resulted in denser GF breads. However, both the specific volume and the baking loss of the GF breads could not be modelled because the effect of each extruded cereal on the blends did not produce appreciable changes in these parameters.…”

“…In addition, our results were close to those found by Centeno et al . (2021) for sorghum bread and Sandri et al . (2017) when incorporating a fibre‐rich ingredient such as chia, resulted in denser GF breads.…”

A Decade of Evidence of Sorghum Potential in the Development of Novel Food Products: Insights from a Bibliometric Analysis

“…Sorghum is indicated as a cereal with high potential to be used in the development of various starchy-based food products for human consumption, such as bakery products, extruded products, beverages and porridges, being very appropriate for the development of GF products [13][14][15]. Figure 5 shows the total scientific production of original articles about different sorghum-based products (2012-2022), showing the categories of these products.…”

“…Over the last ten years, there has been growing interest among researchers in the health benefits of sorghum consumption [10][11][12] and the use of this grain to develop healthier food products [13][14][15]. Sorghum flour usually presents a high content of dietary fiber, fat and protein in addition to some micronutrients and several bioactive compounds that can contribute to improving the nutritional quality of cereal-based products for human consumption [11,13].…”

Effects of White Sorghum Flour Levels on Physicochemical and Sensory Characteristics of Gluten-Free Bread

“…Depending on the color of grain pericarp and endosperm, sorghum can be classified as white, yellow, brown, red or black. White sorghum flour is considered a favorable substitute for wheat flour in breadmaking due to its neutral color and flavor, as well as its highly resistant starch content [20][21][22][23]. In addition, white sorghum typically contains lower tannin [24] and higher protein contents [25] than red or other colored sorghum varieties.…”