Effect of quinoa flour on fermentation, physicochemical and sensory properties of goat milk yogurt

Nouhaila Ajbli ^1* Yassine Zine-Eddine ¹ Salah LAARAJ ^2* Omar Ait El Alia ¹ ELFAZAZI Kaoutar ² Mohamed Bouhrim ³ Rashed Naji Herqash ⁴ Abdelaaty Abdelaziz Shahat Hussein ⁴ Mohamed Benbati ² Fouzia Kzaibe ¹ Khalid Boutoial ^1*

• ¹ Laboratory of Engineering and Applied Technologies, Higher School of Technology, M’ghila Campus, Sultan Moulay Slimane University, BP. 591, Beni Mellal 23000, Morocco, Béni-Mellal, Morocco
• ² National Institute for Agricultural Research (Morocco), Rabat, Morocco
• ³ Laboratoires TBC, Laboratory of Pharmacology, Pharmacokinetics, and Clinical Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmaceutical and Biological Sciences, B.P. 83 Lille, France., Lille, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France
• ⁴ Department of Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2457, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia., Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Goat milk (GM) is highly valued for its rich nutritional content, easy digestibility, and low allergenic potential, making it an excellent alternative in the dairy industry. Quinoa, an Andean pseudo cereal, offers significant nutritional benefits, including high protein, fiber, and antioxidant properties. This study aims to assess the impact of adding quinoa flour (QF) on the fermentation, physicochemical and sensory properties of goat milk yogurt (GMY), addressing a research gap regarding the use of roasted quinoa flour (RoQF) in GMY production .White and red quinoa flours, both roasted and unroasted, were incorporated at 0.5%, 1%, and 1.5% in the yogurt. The analysis focused on fermentation time, lactic acid production, pH, macronutrient composition, product stability, and sensory evaluation. The inclusion of 1% quinoa flour (QF) significantly increased the yogurt's macronutrient content (p ≤ 0.05) compared to the control test, where protein content was 4.01 and fat content was 3.94 (g/100g). Protein content increased by 0.1 to 0.17 (g/100g), reaching 4.18; 4.15; 4.15 and 4.11(g/100g) for goat milk yogurt with white quinoa flour (GMYWQF), goat milk yogurt with red quinoa flour (GMYRQF), goat milk yogurt with roasted white quinoa flour (GMYRoWQF) and goat milk yogurt with roasted red quinoa flour (GMYRoRQF), respectively. Similarly, fat content increased by 0.03 to 0.09(g/100g) reaching 3.98, 4.03, 3.97, and 3.98(g/100g) for GMYWQF, GMYRQF, GMYRoWQF, and GMYRoRQF, respectively. These modifications accelerated lactic acid production, effectively lowering the pH and reducing fermentation time to just 4 hours significantly faster than the control test demonstrating enhanced fermentation efficiency.Sensory analysis revealed that QF significantly improved the texture and flavor of the yogurt(p ≤ 0.05), with roasted quinoa flour (RoQF) further significantly enhancing consumer acceptability (p ≤ 0.05), by reducing the strong flavor of GM. Additionally, QF significantly improved yogurt stability, enhancing texture and shelf life(p ≤ 0.05). These findings highlight QF's value in GMY by significantly (p ≤ 0.05) increasing protein content, improving texture, and reducing syneresis. Roasting QF further enhances sensory qualities, minimizing the strong goat flavor and boosting acceptability. These benefits are crucial for optimizing dairy formulations