Impact of soft kernel texture on milling properties and flour quality of durum wheat (Triticum turgidum)
J. C. MURRAY (1), A. M. Kiszonas (1), J. D. Wilson (2), C. F. Morris (1). (1) Western Wheat Quality Laboratory, Pullman, WA, U.S.A.; (2) USDA Grain Quality and Structure Research Unit, Manhattan, KS, U.S.A.
Worldwide nearly twenty times more common wheat (<i>Triticum aestivum</i>) is produced than durum wheat (<i>Triticum turgidum</i>). Durum wheat is predominately milled into coarse semolina due to the extreme hardness of the kernels. Semolina, lacking the versatility of traditional flour, is used primarily in the production of pasta. The puroindoline genes, responsible for kernel softness in wheat, were introduced into durum, via homoeologous recombination (non-GMO). The resulting varieties, Soft Svevo and Soft Alzada, were milled into flour on three separate mills, at different temper levels. Samples of Svevo, a durum wheat, Xerpha, a soft white winter wheat, and Expresso, a hard red spring wheat, were included in the study as comparisons. Soft Svevo and Soft Alzada exhibited dramatically lower SKCS hardness than that of the durum variety, Svevo, as well as the common wheat, Xerpha. The objective was to determine what impact the introgression of the puroindoline genes had on the milling properties and flour characteristics of the soft durum varieties. Soft Svevo and Soft Alzada had high break flour yields, similar to the common wheat samples and notably greater than the durum sample. The quantity of damaged starch was related to the water absorption of the flour, as well as enzymatic activity. Lower starch damage values are desired in pastry products whereas greater starch damage is acceptable in bread flours. The percentage of damaged starch was lower for Soft Svevo and Soft Alzada than in the common wheat varieties, for every treatment. Overall, Soft Svevo and Soft Alzada exhibited milling properties and flour quality comparable, if not superior, to that of common wheat.
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