Cereal Foods World 42(2):94-96, 98-99

Full-text article: Publication no. W-1997-0114-01R

Effect of Beta-Glucan Barley Fractions in High-Fiber Bread and Pasta (1). B. E. Knuckles (2,3), C. A. Hudson (3), M. M. Chiu (3), and R. N. Sayre (3). (1) Presented in part at the Annual AACC meeting, Minneapolis, MN, Sept. 20–23, 1992. Reference to a company and/or product named by the Department is only for purposes of information and does not imply approval of the product to the exclusion of others which may also be suitable. (2) Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. (3) Research chemist, food technologist, chemist, research leader, Cereal Products Utilization Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Western Regional Research Center, Albany, CA 94710; 510/559-5693. This article is in the public domain and not copyrightable. It may be freely reprinted with customary crediting of the source. American Association of Cereal Chemists, Inc., 1997.

High-fiber, high-complex carbohydrate diets have been useful in regulating blood lipids, blood glucose, and insulin response—factors that are significant in the prevention and treatment of coronary heart disease and diabetes. Breads and pastas with increased levels of dietary fiber (including beta-glucans) were produced by substituting barley flour fractions enriched with beta-glucan for 5, 20, or 40% of the standard flours. The dry milled/sieved and water-extracted barley fractions contained 42 and 51% total dietary fiber (TDF) and 19 and 33% beta-glucans, respectively. Bread, in which the dry milled/sieved barley flour fraction replaced 20% of the standard flour, contained 4.2 times the TDF, 7.6 times the total beta-glucans, and 0.8 times kcal per serving compared to the control. This bread was judged acceptable in laboratory acceptance tests although loaf volume was reduced and color was slightly darker than the control. Pastas in which barley fractions replaced 20 or 40% of the wheat semolina provided 5.4 to 10.4 g TDF per serving (compared with 2 g in the control). These pastas, which could be labeled as good or high-fiber sources, respectively, had acceptable sensory quality although they were darker in color than the control. Kilocalories in a serving of these pastas with 20 and 40% flour substitution were 11 and 16%, respectively, lower than in the control. When the water-extracted barley fraction was substituted in breads and pastas, color scores and acceptability improved over those containing the dry milled/sieved barley fraction.