rheological behaviour of the gluten-free batters. The weak
signal for aniline blue in the control wheat breads is
derived from b-glucan present in wheat grains [47]. In
enriched breads, aniline blue signal verified that b-glucan
was still present in the bread and that it was distributed
randomly.
Conclusion
The incorporation of inulin and oat b-glucan has a positive
effect on the nutritional value of gluten-free and
wheat breads. However, this study showed that several
technological and textural properties are altered upon the
inclusion of these dietary fibres. In order to keep negative
effects as limited as possible, it is crucial to adjust the
water level of the dough upon addition of polysaccharides.
Regarding the frequency sweeps performed, it
becomes clear that oat b-glucan affects the ratio of the
viscous to the elastic portion due to its water-binding
capacity, whereas addition of inulin does not induce significant
changes in the structure of the dough. Both substances
influence bread quality characteristics. Addition of
inulin leads to darkening of the crust in both wheat and
gluten-free breads. Gluten-free bread shows a lighter crust
colour upon the addition of oat b-glucan. The addition of
inulin to bread has unfavourable effects on crumb hardness
and the rate of staling in both bread types. Oat
b-glucan has a remarkable effect on softening the crumb
and reducing the rate of staling of gluten-free bread. Its
incorporation into wheat bread increases crumb hardness
values. Inulin, although interesting from a nutritional
point of view, finds little application in baking due to its
technological effects. It has to be kept in mind that
b-glucan is partly degraded during bread production. This
reduction in molecular weight is more pronounced in
wheat than in gluten-free bread. Considering both the
extent of breakdown and technological effects of oat
b-glucan, it can be concluded that this functional fibre
is highly suitable to increase the nutritional value of