Retention of phenolic compounds and acceptability of gluten-free churros made with tannin or tannin-free sorghum flour

Abstract

The objective of this work was to evaluate the acceptability of gluten-free churros made either with tannin or tannin-free sorghum flour, as well as the retention of their phenolic compounds and antioxidant capacity retention after cooking and frying. The churros were developed by replacing wheat flour with sorghum flour from the sorghum cultivars BRS 305 with tannin (T-churro) or BRS 501 tannin free (TF-churro). The content of phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity were evaluated before and after the thermal processing. Both products had a high acceptability (84.5‒95.5%) for all evaluated sensory attributes, and no difference was observed for color, aroma, and flavor. However, the T-churro showed a higher acceptance for texture, overall acceptability, and purchase intention. The churros had a similar proximate composition for fiber content. The phenol content was about three times and antioxidant activity about 20 times higher for T-churro than for TF-churro. Although subjected to two types of processing (cooking and frying), the fried and ready-to-eat T-churro retained more than 50% of anthocyanins, phenols, and antioxidant activity. The TF-churro product showed a retention of these compounds above 70, 40, and 65%, respectively. The tannin content of 'BRS 305' sorghum increases its functional potential and does not negatively affect the acceptability of the churros. Sorghum either with or without tannins has the potential to be used for the production of gluten-free churros.