Abstract:
Banana fruits are highly consumed in Malaysia. Nevertheless, an issue of enormous
disposal of banana peels should never be underestimated. Previous studies have shown
that banana peels have high potential as functional ingredients to be added in a food
product. This study was aimed to investigate the effect of different enrichment
percentages of banana peel flour (BPF) on the properties of whole meal bread (WMB).
Six different formulations of bread in total (3.5%, 7.0%, 10.5%, 14.0%, and 17.5%),
along with control sample (0% BPF) were prepared. Physical properties including
specific volume, color of crust and crumb and texture profile analyses were evaluated.
Sensory acceptance test of the samples on several attributes such as color of crust and
crumb, odor, porosity, taste, texture and overall acceptance was carried out. The
nutritional properties were also assessed. Results showed that incorporation of BPF in
WMB were significantly affecting (p<0.05) the color characteristics, specific volume and
texture quality of WMB. BPF could be incorporated up to 7% without significantly
affecting (p<0.05) the acceptance of crumb color, odor, and taste as well as overall
acceptance of WMB. Meanwhile, there were significant changes (p<0.05) in terms of
moisture, ash, protein, fat, crude fiber, total available carbohydrate and calorie content of
WMB with increasing BPF substitution. Comparative study was done on control WMB
and 7% BPF substituted WMB. Both were analyzed for their microstructure, total dietary
fiber, antioxidant activity and microbiological shelf life. Sample with 7% BPF gave
significantly lower (p<0.05) pore size, which resulted in denser structure. No significant
difference (p>0.05) was observed on the inhibition activity of lipid peroxidation in both
formulations after seven days of storage. The total dietary fiber content was higher
(14.4%) in 7% BPF compared to control sample (11.3%). Similarly, the phenolic content
was improved from 19.16±1.59 mgGAE/g in control sample to 36.06±1.90 mgGAE/g in
sample with 7% BPF. However, incorporation of BPF could not give WMB a
significantly longer shelf life. This study shows that banana peels have potentials to be
added into healthy food products such as WMB, since it could improve the nutritional
quality of WMB with satisfying sensory acceptance.
