Background and objectives
Yellow split pea flour is a growing trend in the food sector as a functional ingredient. The aim here was to analyze the milling performance and composition of dry yellow split peas on a pilot roller mill and determine whether there were differences in pea cotyledon fractionation.
Findings
Dry yellow split peas were efficiently roller milled with complete recovery in nine mill streams; over half of the flour was produced on two. All streams except 4th Midds had a high proportion of particles <125 μm, starch damage levels similar to wheat flour, and similar protein, pasting, and solvent retention capacities. The 4th Midds represented only 1% of the total flour.
Conclusion
This study shows that dry yellow split peas can be efficiently milled on a wheat roller mill to a small particle size. In contrast to wheat, split peas are fairly uniform in composition with modest differences among mill streams. Flour recovery was essentially 99%.
Significance and novelty
To serve as a food ingredient, dry split peas must first be reduced to small particles. Roller milling, though not a traditional method, was shown to be highly efficient. Unlike wheat, pea flour streams were rather similar in composition and functionality.