An Evaluation of the Quality Characteristics of Probiotic-Influenced Cookies from Air Potato (Dioscorea Bulbifera)

Abstract

In this study, a controlled fermentation process was initiated using pure strains of Lactobacillus bulgaricus, Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus acidophilus for the development of air potato (Dioscorea bulbifera) flour and cookies. Flours from unfermented, spontaneous-fermented and probiotic-fermented air potatoes were formulated as RAPF1, UAPF1 and PAPF1 respectively; while cookies from flours of unfermented, spontaneous-fermented and probiotic-fermented air potatoes were formulated as RAPF2, UAPF2 and PAPF2 respectively. In order to investigate the effect of probiotic inclusion on the flours and cookies of air potato, the proximate, functional, mineral and sensory attributes as well as phytochemical constituents were evaluated using standard methods. For the flours, a significant reduction in carbohydrate was observed in PAPF1 (45.48 ± 0.89%), when compared with RAPF1 (55.55 ± 0.77%) and UAPF1 (63.94 ± 0.16%); thus, indicated its suitability as a low carbohydrate diet. Cookies from the flours showed the highest retention of protein and ash in PAPF2; while CHO were significantly decreased. The highest total phenolic and total flavonoid content was observed in PAPF2 at 0.22 ± 0.02 mgTAE/g and 0.48 ± 0.27 mgTAE/g respectively. The mineral constituents of the flour and cookies of fermented air potatoes were significantly (p<0.05) elevated when compared with the unfermented samples. Probiotic-influenced fermentation of air potato resulted in good physical properties in terms of bulk density, swelling index, water holding capacity, emulsification capacity and oil absorption capacity in both flour and cookies. The hedonic responses of sensory parameters showed significant differences (p<0.05) between the cookies, and PAPF2 was favorably comparable to conventional whole wheat cookies. According to the principal component analysis (PCA), the loading plots of correlations between parameters indicated that texture and aroma had greater influence on the acceptability of the cookies. The inclusion of probiotics for the fermentation of air potato could be a suitable application for the development of a functional cookies with potentials as a healthy snack for diet-specific individuals.

Keywords: Air potato, probiotic, fermentation, flour, cookies.

DOI: 10.7176/JNSR/14-8-03

Publication date:May 31^st 2023