Chia (Salvia hispanica L.) as fat replacer in sweet pan breads

The effects of gel from ground chia (Salvia hispanica L.) were studied as a fat replacer in sweet pan breads. This substitution was addressed to reduce the total amount of fat in the product and to improve the nutritional value of the products regarding the fatty acid composition. The effects on the baking results were determined by assessing common baking evaluations and texture analysis after 2 and 48 h. The doughs were characterised with rheometer and rheofermentometer measurements. Rheometer measurements revealed that the replacement resulted in softer doughs with decreasing values for storage and loss moduli with increasing chia content. The yeast activity was increased with incorporated chia gel compared to the control. The best results for the baking experiments were obtained with 25% fat replacement through ground chia gel. Here, the highest volume yield with the softest crumb even after 48 h was achieved.