Unlocking the potential of waxy wheat: a comprehensive study on nutritional flavor, structural collapse, and...

Waxy wheat possesses unique functional properties but often leads to severe structural collapse in starch-based foods, especially steamed bread. The underlying mechanism remains poorly understood, and comprehensive data on its nutritional profile are still limited. This study first compared the nutritional and flavor components between waxy and normal wheat, and further investigated the collapse mechanism in both steamed and baked bread, focusing on starch properties and non-starch constituents. Waxy wheat demonstrated nutritional advantages, including higher levels of β-glucan, resistant starch, flavonoids, and unsaturated fatty acids, along with a distinct flavor profile. The high viscosity starch gel caused by unique waxy starch and elevated non-starch components, combined with high moisture and pressure during steaming, resulted in more severe collapse in steamed bread than in baked bread. Blending waxy wheat into normal wheat flour at ≤20 % effectively reduced steamed bread collapse, offering a practical utilization strategy.