HYDROCOLLOIDS PRESENT IN FORAGE PALM ENHANCE THE TECHNOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF LINGUINE-TYPE PASTA

The forage palm (Opuntia ficus-indica L. Miller) is a native plant from Mexico and was introduced in Brazil in the 19th century. Due to its resistance to drought and good adaptability, it is an essential forage in semi-arid and arid zones. It is the basis of livestock feeding in northeastern Brazil, with great social and economic importance. It is also used in human food, despite its less expressiveness. Although the forage palm has a low protein content, it stands out for having high levels of total carbohydrates and minerals and phytochemical compounds with antioxidants, anti-inflammatories, antimicrobial and hypoglycemic activities, and high levels of mucilage. Mucilage is considered a hydrocolloid rich in non-starch polysaccharides with high molecular weight. This work aimed to elaborate pasta from whole and refined semolina and forage palm puree (FPP) and evaluate their technological properties. Seven formulations of linguine-type pasta were elaborated, namely: whole semolina (WS), refined semolina (RS), and the others added with 20% FPP (flour basis), namely: whole semolina (WSFPP), refined semolina (RSFPP), 25% RS and 75% WS (25RS75WS), 50% RS and 50% WS (50RS50WS) and 75% RS and 25% WS (75RS25WS). The doughs were added with 21% water on flour basis, homogenized and subjected to extrusion in a linguine shape. The pasta obtained was characterized in terms of optimal cooking time, loss of solids and weight gain of the samples during cooking. Using whole semolina and FPP increased solids losses in pasta cooking, a fact not observed for refined semolina. However, the maximum solid loss was 5.95g/100g (25RS75WS) and 5.94g/100g for WSFPP (P>0,05), but with values below the limit of 6g/100g, considered acceptable for industrial quality standards. The presence of FPP did not alter the hydration properties of the pasta. It was observed that the presence of FPP in the pasta increased cooking time (average of 15min27sec), except for the RSFPP formulation, which remained similar to RS (09min44sec). It was expected that the cooking time would decrease with the presence of the insoluble fibers from whole semolina due to the disruption of the gluten network, causing easier water penetration in the pasta strains. However, due to the presence of mucilage (soluble fiber with high water holding capacity, there was a decrease in water diffusion into the pasta, prolonging its cooking time, a desirable fact for good pasta quality. Regarding the texture properties, it was observed that the presence of whole semolina and FPP in a firm texture (3.01N for WS and 2.37N for WSFPP) and high elasticity (0.61N for WS and 0.63N for WSFPP), resulting in an al dente texture for the pasta. The results showed that forage palm is a suitable alternative for manufacturing industrial pasta, increasing the nutritional value of foods without compromising their technological quality. The results suggest the full potential of the use of the forage palm in pasta and other industrialized foods, contributing to the diversification of the use of the palm and the aggregation of the nutritional value of foods.