Optimization of chapatti textural quality using British wheat cultivar flours

Blending of British hard and soft wheats was explored using Fresco and Galahad, respectively, in an optimization of textural chapatti quality. For acceptability to consumers, chapatti dough should be extensible with limited recoil from the final sheet and produce breads with appropriate textural characteristics. A simple mixture design, employing rheological and viscoelastic studies, was used to establish an appropriate range of flour contents. Then, a shorter range in an optimization phase to define mixtures was applied. Texture softness of chapatti was evaluated through sensory and instrumental analyses at 3, 12 and 24 h of ambient storage. Dough of 33% Fresco and 67% Galahad composite flour had low shrinkage after sheeting and yielded chapattis sensory score high for texture softness, well correlated with instrumental data. The two-phase experimental design produced a template for blending of flours for chapatti production.