Resistant starch could be used to increase dietary fibre

Feb. 25, 2013 – Ingredion Incorporated recently published results of a
new sensory study in Food Science & Nutrition, showing that Hi-maize
resistant starch could be used to increase the dietary fibre content of
certain foods with minimal impact on sensory characteristics.

Feb. 25, 2013 – Ingredion Incorporated recently published results of a new sensory study in Food Science & Nutrition, showing that Hi-maize resistant starch could be used to increase the dietary fibre content of certain foods with minimal impact on sensory characteristics.

The study was conducted by a Texas Woman’s University (Denton, Texas) research team, led by Shanil Juma, Ph.D.and Parakat Vijayagopal, Ph.D. A press release with details of the survey reported that researchers found that muffins, focaccia bread and chicken curry could be made with Hi-maize resistant starch, replacing a portion of the all-purpose flour normally contained in such foods without significantly altering consumer’s acceptability.

The study was randomized and double-blinded, and investigated the sensory characteristics of certain foods containing Hi-maize resistant starch on a group of healthy men and women, aged between 18 and 60. Two formulations of blueberry muffins, herbed focaccia bread and spicy chicken curry were created: the control formulation contained all-purpose flour while the test formulation replaced a portion or all of the all-purpose flour with Hi-maize. The Hi-maize-enriched muffins, focaccia bread, and chicken curry contained 3.2 grams of resistant starch per 113-gram medium-sized muffin, 13.1 grams of resistant starch per 100 grams of bread, and 8.8 grams of resistant starch per one serving or 255 grams of chicken curry. The sensory characteristics of the three types of food products, with and without resistant starch, were evaluated using a nine-point hedonic scale. 

The press release also reported that participants rated the Hi-maize-fortified muffin higher than the control, particularly with regard to moisture content and mouthfeel. It also appeared to be fluffier than the control muffin, and the overall likeability increased by 12 per cent (but was not statistically significant). The participants found a denser, darker and firmer crust in the focaccia bread and found the resistant starch containing focaccia bread to be more likeable than the control bread (a result that was statistically significant). They liked the chicken curry equally as well as the control. The authors concluded that the addition of Hi-maize resistant starch may not significantly alter consumer’s acceptability in most food products. 

For additional information, visit www.foodinnovation.com/hi-maize.