Besides water, maize and rye flour are the main constituents of broa -a unique sourdough bread, manufactured following traditional protocols at the farm level in Portugal. Mother-dough, i.e., a piece of leavened dough kept aside from batch to batch under refrigeration conditions, constitutes the only starter culture used throughout breadmaking. Maize and rye flour, as well as mother-dough, were accordingly assayed for their microbiological profiles throughout storage time, to characterize the evolution in viability of the adventitious microorganisms: total viable counts, as well as viable yeasts, molds, gram-negative rods, gram-positive rods (endospore-forming and nonsporing) and gram-positive cocci (catalase + and catalase − ). In general, all microbial groups exhibited an outstanding resistance to storage, so use of mother-dough appears technologically effective in this form of breadmaking, and an appropriate storage of flour does not convey any important changes to their microbiological profile.
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONSBroa is a traditional sourdough bread made of maize (Zea mays) and rye (Secale cereale) flour. It is widely manufactured at farm level in Northern Portugal following ancient manufacturing procedures, and has earned the food specialty status (with an Appellation d'Origine Protégée label already granted). This research is expected to contribute to a better understanding of its microbiological dynamics (and related chemistry), thus effectively supporting health claims associated with its consumption and rational optimization of its technological process -both of which, in turn, will help to expand its market and economic value. The practical purpose of this research is to study the behavior of microflora during the storage period of mother-dough and flour samples for broa. To date, no research work had specifically tackled on this topic, yet the importance of this traditional specialty bread in the Portuguese economy fully justifies allocation of resources to elucidate the effects of processing on the final product.