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Reducing sodium in baked goods by control of bubble size distributions in dough
F. KOKSEL (1), R. Guillermic (1), X. Sun (1), A. Stone (2), A. Yovchev (2), N. Avramenko (2), M. Nickerson (2), M. Scanlon (1) (1) University of Manitoba, , Canada; (2) University of Saskatchewan, , Canada.

Although numerous strategies have been developed to combat the deteriorative effects of salt reduction in bread, no one approach has shown sufficient promise to meet sodium reduction targets while maintaining good loaf quality. Simply reducing salt content in bread is not straightforward since salt reduction disrupts gas bubble structure, and thereby impairs bread quality. X-rays from a synchrotron source (Canadian Light Source) were employed to non-destructively monitor the rapid dynamics of bubbles in bread doughs in order to investigate how bubble size distribution (BSD) and gas retention are altered by salt reduction. Doughs were prepared using flours from two different wheat cultivars, made either with or without yeast and either with and without salt. All dough formulations were monitored for two hours to obtain time-dependent microtomography data. Complementary dough density measurements were performed to determine overall gas content. The high contrast X-ray images permitted the rapid changes in the bubbly structure of dough to be followed in 3D and within very short acquisition times (less than 1 min). A high number density of bubbles was found which was attributed to the very high resolution (6.5 microns/pixel) of the X-ray images. Using flours from two contrasting wheat cultivars and manipulating salt and yeast concentrations in doughs made from these flours altered the BSD in the dough at the end of mixing and how these BSDs evolved with time (especially for yeasted doughs). This study is the first to investigate the effect of salt on the evolution of the cellular structure of dough during breadmaking using X-rays from a synchrotron source. The results will enable breadmaking formula or process changes that mitigate poor loaf quality while meeting sodium reduction targets.