Banana pseudostem substitution in wheat flour biscuits enriches the nutritional and antioxidative properties with considerable acceptability

Biscuits prepared from composite flours substituted with unconventional plant resources have been considered important for enriching the overall nutritional quality. The present study was undertaken to explore the potential of banana pseudostem flour for the valorization of wheat flour biscuits. At the same time, the study attempts to address the problem of bioresource wastage as huge amounts of banana pseudostem are wasted every year after harvesting of the fruits. In this study, composite flours were prepared by partially substituting wheat flour with banana pseudostem core flour (BPF10, BPF20, BPF30) in different proportions (10, 20, 30% w/w), and biscuits were prepared from these composite flour formulations. Analyses of the physicochemical properties, pasting properties, colour and texture, quantification of phytochemicals and antioxidant properties, and overall sensory evaluation of the flours and biscuits were performed for comparative evaluation. BPF-substituted composite flours showed higher moisture and ash content, pasting temperature and water and oil absorption capacity. BPF-fortified biscuits were found to be rich in ash content, protein, proline, antioxidative phytochemicals, viz. phenols, flavonoids, tannins, ascorbate, and alkaloids, whereas fat, moisture content, and viscosity were comparatively lower than that of the control (wheat flour biscuits). Significant free radical scavenging activities of the BPF-substituted biscuits were also observed. Colour and texture analysis showed desirable changes in lightness (L*), yellowness (b*), chroma (C*), fracturability, and hardness of the BPF-substituted biscuits. Most importantly, considering the sensory characteristics like taste and crispiness, control and BPF10 biscuits were highly comparable. Therefore, the formulation of BPF-substituted biscuits presents an effective way to utilize banana pseudostems, which is also rich in nutraceutical and antioxidative properties.