Abstract:
Currently there is a growing demand for fiber-fortified food products in the
world to prevent from non-communicable diseases. To develop high fiber
soft dough biscuit, kohila flour was added to biscuit formulation at 10% and
15% levels (w/w), respectively. Sugar was substituted with sucralose (1g) to
obtain a low energy product. The chemical and proximate composition of the
product (moisture, pH, protein, fat, ash, dietary fiber, carbohydrate, sodium
and heavy metal, antioxidant capacity) was determined. Sensory evaluation
was carried out by a panel of thirty sensory panelists, using a paired
preference test and hedonic test to select the most preferred sample with the
best sensory attributes. A market survey was done by using sixty sample
sizes to evaluate the consumer preference for the prepared biscuit. Results
showed that kohila flour fortified biscuits contained significantly (p<0.05)
high amount of fibre (7% (w/w), on dry basis). High amount of iron (48%
ppm, dry basis) contained in fortified biscuits while toxic heavy metal as As,
Pb and Cd were absent. The antioxidant capacity (Radical DPHH scavenging
capacity) was as high in kohila flour added biscuits (20-23%). The10%
kohila flour added biscuits yielded the highest consumer acceptability.
Survey results showed that there was a correlation between preference for
sucralose added biscuits and health condition (p<0.05) of the consumers. The
preference for fiber-fortified biscuits and sucralose added biscuits were high
in consumers with higher level of education. Findings of this study revealed
that kohila flour fortified biscuits can be used as a valuable source of dietary
fibre which is beneficial to improve the health of the consumers.
