Physico-chemical characterisation of whole meal flours from three wild chickpea varieties and their technological performance in Gluten Free Bread

The present study investigated the physico-chemical characteristics of whole-meal flours from three wild chickpea varieties (white chickpea – WC, red rough chickpea – RRC, red smooth chickpea – RSC) compared to a modern chickpea variety (MC) and their bread-making performances in 30% (w/w flour) substituted GF breads. Wild chickpea flours showed the highest ash, total dietary fiber (TDF), and total antioxidant capacity (6.3%, 13.4%, and 9.5% increase for WC, RRC, and RSC flour compared to MC flour) values compared to MC sample, and red varieties (RRC- and RSC-samples) showed the highest total phenolic content (15.5% and 17.0% increase compared to MC flour). Significant differences were also found in protein content and techno-functional properties. Bread specific volume and crumb hardness were significantly affected by chickpea variety, with red varieties (RRC- and RSC-samples) revealing the lowest impact. 1H NMR proton molecular mobility significantly changed as a function of chickpea variety, and these differences might be associated to the different macroscopic bread quality. Overall, the tested wild chickpea flours revealed valuable chemical composition, and differed in the techno-functional and bread-making performances, with red varieties showing the most promising results to improve GF breads.