Chinese steamed bread fortified with green banana flour

Abstract

Incorporation of Green Banana Flour (BF) into Chinese steamed bread (CSB) may be a strategy to fortify the traditional CSB due to its health benefits. However, BF-incorporated foods in general, have poorer sensory properties affecting consumer acceptability. The aim of this study was to examine the adjustment of water content from the original formulation and addition of coffee flavour on physical properties and consumer acceptability of BF-incorporated CSB. Wheat flour as control was substituted with 15% BF varied by addition of 30% water and coffee flavour. Physical analysis (colour, volume, spread ratio and texture) of CSB and hedonic test for appearance, aroma, flavour, overall acceptability and preference ranking of CSB were conducted. Results showed no significant differences (p>0.05) in specific volume, springiness, and adhesiveness among samples. A significant increase (p<0.05) in spread ratio and softness was noted in CSB with added water, possibly due to better hydration of gluten proteins and starch which led to increased viscous flow in the dough and softer texture. Incorporation of BF caused greyness in the CSB whilst addition of coffee flavour together with BF contributed a brown colour. Results of hedonic and ranking tests showed that BF-incorporated CSB with added Coffee was most liked for its aroma, flavour, texture and overall acceptability. BF-incorporated CSB with additional water was comparable to control in most aspects of consumer acceptability. This study showed that the addition of more water into BF-incorporated CSB formulation can improve its sensory properties whilst coffee flavour successfully masked the unappealing appearance of the BF-CSB, therefore, increasing consumer acceptability. Hence, with further improvements of CSB and food products incorporated with BF, there is potential that such products can be introduced into the food industry successfully.