Study backs antioxidant-rich coriander bread fortification
A study conducted by researchers from the Department of Food Technology and Biochemical Engineering at Jadavpur University in Kolkata, India looked into the impacts on wheat flour when supplemented with coriander leaves.
The research evaluated the sensory, textural and baking characteristic impacts, the staling properties (crumb firmness and moisture content) and antioxidant level improvement.
Findings showed “a substantial improvement in sensory characteristics”, the researchers wrote.
“Incorporation of dried and powdered coriander leaf into wheat flour shows that the supplemented breads have, in general, enhanced moisture retention capacity, slower staling rate, richer antioxidant content, better baking characteristics and improved sensory properties in terms of colour, texture, mouthfeel and flavour.”
“Bread enriched with coriander leaf powder is therefore likely to have greater acceptability to consumers compared to unfortified bread.”
Good for you
The fortified bread sector is surging with use of rice, corn and soy flours, and flaxseed and fenugreek common ingredients added.
Coriander leaves are rich in essential oils, the herbage contains pro-vitamin A, B2 and C and the leaves and stem tips are rich in polyphenolic flavonoids, including quercitin, kaemferol, ramnetin and epigenin, the researchers said.
“A sharp increase in antioxidant content was an important beneficial fortification effect observed in the fortified breads,” the study showed.
Shelf-life promise
Antioxidants are often associated with their preservative properties, and the researchers were interested in looking at the impact on shelf-life when using coriander leaves in bread.
“Shelf-life of bread is influenced by mainly two factors; staling and microbial deterioration,” the research detailed.
For bread, the researchers said that the staling process (when the crumb firmness is altered) is the main shelf-life limiting factor.
Findings of the study found that “supplementation with coriander lead powder bettered the crumb moisture content with only a little increase in crumb firmness.”
The study concluded that when considering coriander supplementation in breads, 3-5% is the optimum level that offers “the best compromise for the highest acceptability of the fortified breads”.
“It can be concluded that supplementation of wheat flour by natural herbs is a new approach towards fortification of white bread. The leaves, stem, roots and seeds of natural herbs are rich in minerals, micronutrients, antioxidants, dietary fibres and essential oils,” the researchers wrote.
Source: Journal of Food Science and Biotechnology
2012, Vol. 21, No. 2, pages 425-433
Published online 30 April 2012 DOI 10.1007/s10068-012-0054-9
“Supplementation of Common White Bread by Coriander Lead Powder”
Authors: L. Das, U. Raychaudhuri and R. Chakraborty
