Gluten-free green banana flour muffins: chemical, physical, antioxidant, digestibility and sensory analysis

Enhancing prebiotic, antioxidant, and nutritional qualities of noodles: A collaborative strategy with foxtail millet and green banana flour

Foxtail millet (FM) and green banana (GB) are rich in health-promoting nutrients and bioactive substances, like antioxidants, dietary fibers, and various essential macro and micronutrients. Utilizing GB and FM flour as prebiotics is attributed to their ability to support gut health and offer multiple health benefits. The present study aimed to evaluate the impact of incorporating 10% GB flour (GBF) and different proportions (10-40%) of FM flour (FMF) on the prebiotic potential, antioxidant, nutrient, color, cooking quality, water activity and sensory attributes of noodles. The prebiotic potential, antioxidant, and nutrient of the produced noodles were significantly improved by increasing the levels of FMF. Sensorial evaluation revealed that noodles containing 30% FMF and 10% GBF attained comparable scores to the control sample. Furthermore, the formulated noodles exhibited significantly (p < 0.05) higher levels of protein, essential minerals (such as iron, magnesium, and manganese), dietary fiber (9.37 to 12.71 g/100 g), total phenolic compounds (17.81 to 36.35 mg GA eq./100 g), and total antioxidants (172.57 to 274.94 mg AA eq./100 g) compared to the control. The enriched noodles also demonstrated substantially (p < 0.05) increased antioxidant capacity, as evidenced by enhanced DPPH and FRAP activities, when compared to the control noodles. Overall, the incorporation of 30% FMF and 10% GBF led to a noteworthy improvement in the nutritional and antioxidant qualities of the noodles, as well as the prebiotic potential of the noodles with regard to L. plantarum, L. rhamnosus, and L. acidophilus. The implementation of this enrichment strategy has the potential to confer a multitude of health advantages.

Green banana resistant starch: A promising potential as functional ingredient against certain maladies

This review covers the significance of green banana resistant starch (RS), a substantial polysaccharide. The food industry has taken an interest in green banana flour due to its 30% availability of resistant starch and its approximately 70% starch content on a dry basis, making its use suitable for food formulations where starch serves as the base. A variety of processing techniques, such as heat-moisture, autoclaving, microwaving, high hydrostatic pressure, extrusion, ultrasound, acid hydrolysis, and enzymatic debranching treatments, have made significant advancements in the preparation of resistant starch. These advancements aim to change the structure, techno-functionality, and subsequently the physiological functions of the resistant starch. Green bananas make up the highest RS as compared to other foods and cereals. Many food processing industries and cuisines now have a positive awareness due to the functional characteristics of green bananas, such as their pasting, thermal, gelatinization, foaming, and textural characteristics. It is also found useful for controlling the rates of cancer, obesity, and diabetic disorders. Moreover, the use of GBRS as prebiotics and probiotics might be significantly proved good for gut health. This study aimed at the awareness of the composition, extraction and application of the green banana resistant starch in the future food products.

Enhancing Banana Flour Quality through Physical Modifications and Its Application in Gluten-Free Chips Product

The objective of this study was to analyze the effects of different single or dual physical treatments, including pre-gelatinization (PBF), annealing (ANN), PBF+ANN, and ANN+PBF, on banana flour's characteristics and its application in gluten-free chip production. The study involved determining the color, swelling capacity, solubility, oil absorption index, and pasting properties of both the native and modified banana flour samples. The results showed a significant change in color, particularly in the pre-gelatinized samples. There was a noticeable decrease in the values of the pasting parameters in the modified samples. PBF samples exhibited a remarkable reduction in the breakdown value compared to the native and ANN treated samples. Furthermore, PBF-treated banana flour displayed higher oil absorption and swelling power than the other samples, along with lower solubility in the PBF-treated sample. These characteristics appear to be responsible for enabling the pre-gelatinized sample to form the dough required for producing banana chips, resulting in distinct texture profiles. Finally, our research emphasizes the useful application of modified banana flour in the food industry and emphasizes how crucial it is to choose the right modification method to achieve the desired effects on the product.

Changes in the physicochemical properties of isolated starch and plantain (Musa AAB Simmonds) flours for early maturity stage

This work focuses on the study of the physicochemical changes that take place during the first stage of ripening of plantain, with particular attention to the changes in the orthorhombic and hexagonal nanocrystals present in this starch, and its relation shift with resistance starch. Significant changes were observed in the proximal analysis of plantain flour. A gradual increase in moisture content was attributed to the high content of crystalline structures and molecules that can be removed by drying. Water activity increased with ripening, which was attributed to the hygroscopic nature of the flours. The protein content increased, and the carbohydrate content decreased, indicating the progress of biochemical reactions. The changes in the fat content are consistent with the hydrolysis and resynthesis of lipids during the ripening process. The obtained results indicate a significant influence of the ripening stage on the physicochemical properties of flour and starch of plantain, which is associated with the occurrence of a climacteric peak on the 4th day of ripening. The hydration properties of plantain flour decreased significantly during the ripening days, consistent with the occurrence of a climacteric peak. Water holding capacity (WHC) and water binding capacity (WBC) were affected by the degree of digestion of native starch granules and protein denaturation during fruit ripening. Scanning electron microscopes (SEM) showed that during ripening the surface of the isolated starches do not suffer any significative damage. X-ray diffraction patterns were used to identify crystalline structures and to study the changes in the crystalline structures. These results showed that the starch contains orthorhombic and hexagonal nanocrystals, which play and important role and which show small structural damage during ripening reflected in a decrease in their relative crystallinity. This is the first time that these nanocrystals have been studied and considered in the ripening process. Differential scanning calorimetry was used to study the thermal transition in isolated starch. The results indicated that the gelatinization of starch corresponds to the solvation of orthorhombic and hexagonal nanocrystals, and that during ripening there is a decrease in the enthalpy reflecting some crystal structural damage. Pasting properties were studied using a Starch cell for flours and isolated starches, indicating that the pasting profile is governed by intrinsic and extrinsic factors. The resistant starch does not show significant changes at this stage of maturation. This starch is the one with the highest resistant starch content reported in the literature (38%). It was hypothesized that the resistant starch is directly related to the amount of whole starch granules, and more importantly, directly related to the number concentration of orthorhombic and hexagonal nanocrystals. Therefore, knowledge of the physicochemical and nutritional properties of plantain and flour at each stage of ripening allows better selection according to industrial applications.

Functional, Thermal and Structural Properties of Green Banana Flour (cv. Giant Cavendish) by De-astringency, Enzymatic and Hydrothermal Treatments

Green banana fruit with high resistant starch (RS) content has a potential to be a nutraceutical ingredient despite having an unpleasant astringency taste and is yet to be fully explored. In this study, the green banana after de-astringency treatment was employed for flour production, and the resulting flour was subjected to modification by the combined treatments of pullulanase debranching and annealing. The banana flour (BF) and the modified flour (MF) were compared with each other by evaluating their functional, thermal and structural properties. The BF showed a restricted-swelling pasting profile, behaving like a slightly chemically cross-linked starch; the MF exhibited less pronounced changes in pasting behavior with increased solubility and decreased swelling power and dispersed volume fraction at elevated temperatures. As compared with the BF, an enhanced thermal stability of the MF was observed, reflected in the endotherm shifting to higher temperatures with increased enthalpy. The BF displayed a C_A-type polymorph, while the MF comprised a mixture of B- and V-type polymorphs with increased crystallinity. The MF showed an increased molecular order, reflected in an increase in short-range double helical order detected in the starch fingerprint regions of FT-IR spectra, and along with increased crystallinity, underlying its enhanced thermal stability. The modification treatment resulted in irregularly shaped flour particles with a more compact structure as revealed by morphological characters. The results of this study can provide useful information for the development of food products using the modified green banana flour with improved thermal stability and functional properties as a health-promoting ingredient.

Flour on Gluten-Free Muffins from Different Edible Cassava Varieties in Thailand

In Thailand new edible cassava varieties have been developed to be used in the food industry. The aim of this research was to analyze the difference between flour from three cassava varieties and to evaluate the suitability and quality of flour for gluten-free muffins. The physico-chemical properties of flour from three varieties were studied. The results showed the moisture content of flour was between 10.65 ± 0.01 and 10.85 ± 0.45%. Total protein content was highly significant with a difference of 1.97 ± 0.00%, 2.15 ± 0.01%, and 2.18 ± 0.01%, respectively. Moreover, ash and fat in each flour were highly significant. Amylose content was 19.93 ± 0.47%, and the viscosity was 6286.00 ± 1.52 mPa.s. The color of flour values of L* a* b* value was not statistically different in each variety of flour. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis was used for the biochemical change in flour. The PCA and cluster analysis results revealed that cassava flour from Pirun 6 was different from Pirun 2 and Pirun 4. After that, the test using selected cassava flour from Pirun 6 to test the physical properties and sensory attributes of gluten-free muffins compared with wheat flour found that gluten-free muffins were overall better than basic muffins.

Product development of ice cream stick from raw banana powder

This research was focused on using raw bananas in place of natural wooden ice cream sticks. The raw bananas were used in a powdered form and then processed to create a substitute for the wooden sticks. A research operation was carried out, experimenting with different proportions of banana powder in a randomized complete block experimental design (RCBD). The properties of interest for the ice cream sticks were hardness, fracturability, and a_w of samples, as well as a sensory evaluation. The research showed that ice cream sticks which contained 50-80% raw banana powder with 40% sugar and 40 min of baking resulted in a product with the properties of commonly used wooden ice cream sticks, and that the product also had a good appearance along with positive consumer response. In addition, the maximum shelf life of such ice-cream sticks was 8 days. In the future, development of this product can increase the value of bananas and also reduce the waste of single-use wooden ice cream sticks.