Cereal Chem 69:619-623   |  VIEW ARTICLE

Use of a Penetrometer for Measuring Rheological Characteristics of Biscuit Dough.

R. S. Manohar and P. H. Rao. Copyright 1992 by the American Association of Cereal Chemists, Inc. 

The penetrometer generally used for measuring the consistency of fat was modified to determine various rheological characteristics of biscuit dough. A metallic disk with a provision to increase the compression weight was introduced in place of a penetrometer cone. The dough was compressed for 10 sec and allowed to recover for 60 sec by removing the weight. It was found that 410 g was the optimum compression weight for biscuit dough (2.2 cm diameter x 1 cm height). The studies indicated that a significant correlation existed between compliance values (r = 0.87, P less than 0.01) and elastic recovery values (r = 0.74, P less than 0.01) as measured by penetrometer and viscoelastograph. The compliance and elastic recovery values depended on mixing time and on the amount of water added. The elastic recovery, which indicated the development of dough, was high in dough either mixed for a longer period (4 min) with a smaller amount of water (26%) or mixed for a shorter period (2 min) with a greater amount of water (30%). The elastic recovery of biscuit dough made from medium-hard flour was always higher at any condition when compared with the dough made from soft wheat flour.