Impact of Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) Oil Cake on Pasta Physicochemical Properties

This study was carried out to evaluate the effects of sesame ( Sesamum indicum L.) oil cake on pasta processing and the functional characteristics of the end product. The pasta produced from wheat flour fortified with 5, 7.5, 10, 12.5, and 15% ( w/w ) sesame oil cake showed a significant increase in total protein ( i.e. , ranging from 12.3 and 16.0 g/100 g), lipid ( i.e. , 3-fold) and crude fiber ( i.e. , 0.58 to 0.91 g/100 g) contents with the increasing addition of sesame oil cake. Consistograph tests showed that the pressure maximum decreased significantly from 267.2 kPa for the wheat flour dough (control) to 157.6 kPa upon the addition of 15% ( w/w ) sesame oil cake to wheat flour. Drop-in pressure after 250 and 450 s was lower for the control sample than for those containing 5, 7.5, 10, 12.5, and 15% ( w/w ) sesame oil cake. The elasticity value for the control dough was 500.1 Pa, and it was reduced to 392.3 Pa with the addition of 15% ( w/w ) sesame oil cake to wheat flour resulting also in a significant reduction in the extensibility. The pasta from the flour blend with 7.5% ( w/w ) sesame oil cake exhibited the highest cooking loss, at 5.40 g/100 g. Sensorial evaluation of the flavor and stickiness of pasta produced from the flour blends containing up to 10% ( w/w ) of sesame oil cake was satisfactory and recommended to open the door for industrial utilization of such valuable and nutritious by-products. Sesame components and gluten network interactions are believed to play a key role in modifying pasta’s functional characteristics and require more investigation.