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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Peoria, Illinois » National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research » Functional Foods Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #345671
Research Project: Improved Utilization of Low-Value Oilseed Press Cakes and Pulses for Health-Promoting Food Ingredients and Biobased Products

Location: Functional Foods Research

Title: Yogurt fortification with chickpea (Cicer arietinum) flour: Physicochemical and sensory effects

Author
item CHEN, XI - Texas A&M University
item Singh, Mukti
item BHARGAVA, KANIKA - University Of Central Oklahoma
item RAMANATHAN, RANJITH - Oklahoma State University

Submitted to: Journal of the American Oil Chemists' Society
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/31/2018
Publication Date: 7/27/2018
Citation: Chen, X., Singh, M., Bhargava, K., Ramanathan, R. 2018. Yogurt fortification with chickpea (Cicer arietinum) flour: Physicochemical and sensory effects. Journal of the American Oil Chemists' Society. 95:1041-1048. doi: 10.1002/aocs.12102.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/aocs.12102

Interpretive Summary: Yogurt is a popular dairy product made by adding organisms to milk. It is considered nutritious and benefits the digestive health when consumed. Chickpeas are high in protein, and fiber and contain sugars that promote the growth of beneficial organisms in the intestines. In this study, we evaluated the effects of adding chickpea flour to milk on the processing and quality of the yogurt. The results suggest that addition of chickpea flour hastened the growth of the organisms, reducing the time to set the yogurt. Thus, adding chickpea to yogurt results in a healthy product that has better processing quality and is acceptable by the consumers.

Technical Abstract: Yogurt is a popular dairy product made by the bacterial fermentation of milk. It is considered nutritious and has probiotics as a result of fermentation that benefit digestive health when consumed. Protein fortification of foods is an effective way to deliver increased satiety to consumers. Chickpeas are high in protein, fiber and prebiotics. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of chickpea flour added to yogurt mix to increase the protein content, and prebiotics on the overall quality of yogurt. In this study, 2% low-fat milk was supplemented with 1%- 5% (w/v) chickpea flour, inoculated with a yogurt culture, fermented and stored at 4 °C. The control and fortified samples were analyzed for pH, total titratable acidity (TTA), viscosity, and microbial counts over a 21-day storage period (4°C). The color, viscosity, and sensory evaluation was also performed on the initial day of production. Results demonstrated that chickpea flour promoted the growth of bacteria, and decreased the fermentation time was by up to 1.5 hours. The color and viscosity value of yogurt were not affected by fortification with chickpea flour. Chickpea flour stimulated the growth of Streptococcus thermophilus and L. delbrueckii subsp. Bulgaricus after the initial fermentation and maintained a greater bacterial counts over a 21-day refrigerated storage. Sensory evaluation revealed that there was no significant influence in the appearance, aroma, texture, flavor/taste, and overall preference level among the control sample, and samples with 1% and 2% of chickpea flour. The results suggest that chickpea fortified yogurt offers an alternative new fermented dairy product that is acceptable and provides a better quality.