Germinated, toasted and cooked chickpea as ingredients for breadmaking

Area of Science:

• Food Science
• Cereal Chemistry
• Nutritional Science

Background:

• Gluten-free breads often lack desirable texture and nutritional value.
• Chickpea flour is a potential gluten-free alternative, but processing effects require investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of chickpea bean processing (germination, toasting, cooking) on flour characteristics.
• To assess the suitability of processed chickpea flours for gluten-free bread production.
• To analyze the rheological, instrumental, nutritional, and sensory properties of chickpea-based breads.

Main Methods:

• Chickpea beans were processed via germination, toasting, and cooking.
• Dough rheology was analyzed using Mixolab®.
• Instrumental quality, nutritional content, and sensory attributes of resulting breads were evaluated.

Main Results:

• Chickpea doughs exhibited low consistency, primarily influenced by starch gelatinization and gelification.
• Cooked chickpea flour produced bread with the lowest specific volume but the brightest crumb and softest texture.
• Toasted chickpea flour yielded the highest specific volume, though with increased crumb hardness.
• Cooking reduced carbohydrates, ash, and protein content but enhanced protein digestibility.

Conclusions:

• Toasting and cooking chickpea beans produce flours suitable for gluten-free bread.
• These processed chickpea flours offer the nutritional benefits of legumes.
• Gluten-free breads made with processed chickpea flours demonstrate acceptable sensory characteristics.