Effects of wheat bran and sugarbeet fiber on tarhana quality

Tarhana is a traditional Turkish fermented food product. Wheat bran (WB), which is a concentrated source of insoluble fiber, is the by-product of milling. Sugarbeet fiber (SBF) is derived from the pulp of sugarbeets used in sugar production. Both WB and SBF contain high levels of dietary fibers that has been ascribed a steadily increasing role in our health and well-being. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of WB and SBFon the quality of tarhana. In the first part of the study, WB was added into the tarhana formulation at the levels of 4, 8, 12, 16 and 20% (w/w, flour basis). In the second part of the research, WB was used to replace wheat flour in the formulation of tarhana at the same levels with 10% SBF to again replace flour, while the level of all other ingredients was maintained. Total dietary fiber (TDF) contents of WB and SBF were 37.8 and 69.8%, respectively. Some chemical properties (crude protein, ash, pH, titratable acidity), CIE color values (L*, a*, b*), sensory properties and TDF contents of WB and SBF containing tarhana samples were investigated. Addition of both WB and WB-SBF significantly increased ash and crude protein contents, pH and titratable acidity values of tarhana samples (p<0.01). Addition of WB-SBF resulted in lower L* and a* color values than addition of WB, giving slightly darker products. TDF contents of the WB and WB-SBF supplemented tarhanas increased significantly with increasing addition levels (p<0.01). Addition of both WB and WB-SBF upto 12% into the tarhana formulations were evaluated as acceptable in terms of most of the sensory properties (color, consistency, taste, mounth-feel and overall acceptability). Slightly lower values in some of the color and/or sensory properties could be compensated by the health benefits of dietary fiber products.