Watermelon Rind Dietary Fibers as Natural Source to Enhance Texture of Wheat Bread

Area of Science:

• Food Science and Technology
• Agricultural Byproduct Valorization
• Nutritional Enhancement of Baked Goods

Background:

• Wheat bread quality is often limited by the inherent properties of low-quality wheat flour (FLBM).
• Dietary fiber sources, such as agricultural byproducts, offer potential for improving food product quality.
• Watermelon rinds (WMR) are a rich source of polysaccharides and hemicellulose, underutilized components.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the potential of watermelon rinds (WMR) and their derivatives (WMRP, WMRH) as dietary fiber to enhance wheat bread quality.
• To evaluate the impact of WMR, WMRP, and WMRH incorporation on the dough rheology and bread characteristics.

Main Methods:

• Extraction of water-soluble polysaccharides (WMRP) and hemicellulose (WMRH) from watermelon rinds.
• Incorporation of WMR, WMRP, and WMRH at 0.5%, 1%, and 1.5% (w/w) into low-quality wheat flour (FLBM).
• Evaluation of dough rheology using alveograph testing and assessment of bread volume, texture, and color.

Main Results:

• WMR demonstrated a more significant enhancement of the alveograph profile compared to WMRP and WMRH.
• 1% WMR, WMRP, and WMRH addition increased dough deformation work by 16%, 15%, and 13%, and P/L ratios by 42%, 36%, and 38%, respectively.
• Incorporation of 1% WMR into FLBM resulted in substantial improvements in bread volume and texture compared to control.

Conclusions:

• Watermelon rind components, particularly WMR, are effective dietary fiber sources for improving the quality of bread made from low-quality wheat flour.
• The optimal concentration for enhancing bread quality using WMR was found to be 1% (w/w).
• This study highlights the potential of utilizing watermelon rind byproducts in the baking industry for value-added products.