Amino acid profile, physicochemical and sensory properties of noodles produced from wheat-Bambara protein isolate

In this study, the physicochemical, cooking quality and organoleptic properties of noodles prepared from wheat substituted with Bambara protein isolate at different proportions were studied. Optimum cooking time reduced from 5.4 min to 3.6 min at a temperature of 100 degrees C with an increase in replacement level while there is an increase in cooking loss and cooking yield. Proximate composition analysis revealed an increase in noodle protein, moisture and ash content as well as a decrease in the proportion of noodle carbohydrate, fibre, and fat with increasing Bambara protein isolate content. In addition, an assessment of nutritional parameters indicated an increase in essential, polar, hydrophobic and hydrophilic amino acids with increasing levels of Bambara protein isolate. Sensory evaluation of noodles revealed that the sample with 25% Bambara protein isolate is the most preferred in terms of color, aroma, texture and overall acceptability. This shows that the noodle quality can be improved by fortification of wheat flour with Bambara protein isolate.