A comparative study of the effects of three galactomannans on the functionality of extruded pea–rice blends

The present study evaluated the effects of three galactomannans on the physical and nutritional characteristics, and sensory acceptability of pea–rice based extruded products, targeted as nutritional snacks. A base blend of 70:30 pea and rice fortified with guar gum (GG), locust bean gum (LBG) and fenugreek gum (FG), at 5%, 10%, 15% and 20%, was extruded at pre-determined optimum processing conditions. All three gums resulted in good expanded products. Increasing the inclusion levels of gums, however, had no effect (P > 0.05) on the degree of expansion. Addition of 5% GG and LBG reduced (P < 0.05) the hardness, while the inclusion of GG and LBG at levels higher than 5%, and all inclusion levels of FG, increased (P < 0.05) the hardness of extruded products. Relative to other treatments, FG produced extrudates that were harder and crispier. The mean scores of sensory evaluation indicated that all products containing gums up to 15% were within the acceptable range. Extrusion increased (P < 0.001) the soluble fibre content and decreased the insoluble fraction; the magnitude of these changes were greater in GG and FG. The addition of 15% gums in the pea–rice blend reduced (P < 0.05) the glycaemic index to less than 55. Overall, the data suggest that all three galactomannans could be incorporated up to 15% in a pea–rice blend to develop nutritious, organoleptically acceptable, extruded snack products with low glycaemic index.