Combination of empirical and fundamental rheology for the characterization of dough from wheat flours with different extraction rate

Empirical rheological techniques conventionally used for evaluating wheat flour dough can be coupled to fundamental rheology, especially when viscoelastic properties of dough, like those with high bran content, cannot be readily investigated using empirical rheology alone. In this study, the correlations between the two types of rheology were evaluated considering flours with different extraction rate, from refined to whole grain ones. From empirical tests it resulted that flours with higher protein and fibre contents required more water to be optimally hydrated, showing also longer dough developing time. Higher tenacity and lower extensibility were also observed. Fundamental rheology assessed the viscoelastic character of the dough with a predominantly solid-like behavior, and a direct correlation between flour extraction rate and dough consistency was found. Dough made from less refined flours was less deformable and showed a more elastic recovery ability. Starch gelatinization temperature and process rate, increased and decreased, respectively, with the extraction rate. The existing correlations between empirical and fundamental rheology were used to estimate the alveograph parameters of blends of type 00 soft wheat flour enriched with 15% and 20% ground soft wheat bran. Overall, the study has shown that the combination of the two rheological approaches is useful to determine the best use of high-fibre flours that could not be determined by the official empirical methods.