Application of Micro Z-arm dough mixer in wheat research - Effect of protein addition on mixing properties of wheat dough

Abstract

A Micro Z-arm mixer has been developed which needs only four grams of flour per test. The new instrument is suitable for screening new wheat cultivars in the early phase of selection on the basis of dough mixing properties. The micro-scale instrument can also be viewed as a valuable research tool for investigation of the structure/function relationships in flour and the effects of different ingredients and additives on rheological parameters. The effects of protein addition on mixing properties of wheat dough were studied. Alkali-soluble isolates and Osborne protein fractions extracted from wheat, corn-, rice germs and amaranth seeds were used as protein additives. Dough development time, maximum resistance of dough and resistance breakdown was calculated from recorded mixing curves. Results showed that the micro-scale equipment is sensitive enough for detection of the effect of less than 40 mg of protein addition on mixing parameters. The effects of additions depend on the type of proteins added to the wheat flour and the parameters calculated from the mixing curves.