Effect of Flour Composition and Temperature on Physico-chemical and Sensory Properties of Quinoa Based Extrudates

Aim: Quinoa has extraordinary and promising nutritional and cultivation features, therefore supplementing or replacing of common cereal grains with quinoa carries high potential benefits to consumers worldwide. Quinoa incorporation in diets can be made more acceptable through extrusion cooking which is cost effective process. However for quinoa extrusion it is used to be incorporated with other flours to enhance its extrusion properties. Therefore the current study aims to develop suitable ingredient blends and extrusion temperature for preparing acceptable quinoa based extrudates.

Study Design: Randomized block design (RCBD) design was used.

Place and Duration of Study: Department of Foods and Nutrition, Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University, Hyderabad, Between November 2015 and June 2016.

Methodology: Seven formulation of quinoa flour blended with different proportions of corn, oats, rice and sweet potato flours were extruded at three different temperatures (100˚C, 130˚C and 150˚C) and total of 21 treatments were obtained. Their sensory acceptability and physico-chemical properties such expansion ratio, bulk density, hardness, colour, WAI and WSI were evaluated.

Results: Lower Bulk density, lower hardness, lighter colour and higher sensory score were observed in extrudates processed at highest temperature (150˚C). However, the highest expansion was observed at 130˚C for most formulations. Two formulations were observed to have desirable properties such as highest expansion ratio, lowest bulk density, most desirable colour and sensory acceptability namely Quinoa:Corn:Rice (60:25:15) and Quinoa:Oats:Rice (60:25:15).

Conclusion: Two formulation were found most desirable namely Quinoa:Corn:Rice (60:25:15) and Quinoa:Oats:Rice (60:25:15). However Quinoa:Oats:Rice can be better blend in view of nutritional prospect.