Soumis le : 15/06/2015 Nature & Technology http://www.univ-chlef.dz/revuenatec/ Forme révisée acceptée le : 20/05/2017 Auteur correspondant : amkouidri@gmail.com Improving nutritional value of pasta enriched with wheat bran Amel KOUIDRI *,a,b , Amel MERIBAI b , Samir FLICI c a Département d’Agroalimentaire, Université Saad Dahleb de Blida – Blida 09000, Algéria. b Département de technologie agroalimentaire et nutrition humaine, Ecole Nationale supérieure d’Agronomie, El -Harrach 16130, Alger, Algéria. c Faculté des sciences et de la technologie, Université de Médéa – Médéa 26000, Algéria. Abstract The aim of the present study is to introduce the wheat bran (Triticum), at different incorporation rates (10, 15, 20 and 25 %), in local pasta, in order to obtain fiber aestivum enriched products. For this purpose, nutritional, sensory and microbiological characteristics of pasta were analyzed. The results obtained revealed that pasta had a satisfying nutritional and technological quality. The Sensory characteristics and cooking quality of pastes as well as their nutritional quality were evaluated and compared to the control sample free of wheat bran. In general, an increase of optimum cooking time, swelling index and water absorption was induced by incorporating wheat bran in experimental pasta. Pasta enriched with wheat bran showed a dark color, especially with incorporation rates 20% and 25%. Whatever the incorporation rate, all pasta revealed high nutritional value compared to the control, with the exception of the dark color. Finally, this study showed the possibility of elaborating pasta enriched with wheat bran, which is mainly used as animal feed. This incorporation allowed enriching the pasta in complex carbohydrates, protein, fat and minerals, without greatly changing the sensory properties. Keywords: dietary fiber, wheat bran, Pasta, cooking quality, nutrition properties, sensory evaluation. 1. Introduction The interest in the development of dietary fiber enriched foods has increased significantly due to the awareness about health of consumers and food industry [1]. In recent years in Algeria, research has been conducted on the role of the fraction of "fibers" and focused on the effects of dietary fiber in human pathology [2, 3]. The Interest on cereal fiber due to their important physiological role is growing increased in order to produce high functional quality pasta from unconventional raw materials [4]. Nowadays, the introduction of dietary fiber in food pasta is a relatively easy, convenient and inexpensive operation. Thus, to preserve the nutritional qualities, several studies have been conducted and considering either, whole grain foods or implementing the re-incorporation of bran in food products [5]. It is clear that pasta is usually made from wheat semolina, but more recently, other cereals were used to partially replace it [6-8]. However, pasta rich in fibers, in essential micronutrients and with low glycemic index components may be preferred by the consumers, in so far as the pasta products are generally high in starch but low in dietary fibers, minerals, vitamins and phenolic compounds. Indeed, Consumers are increasingly interested in foods containing health-promoting ingredients due to their benefits associated to satiety, digestion, weight management and obesity prevention [9]. In other studies, a particular attention has been given to the use of wheat bran, wheat germ and whole-wheat grains in pasta matrices [10-13]. The aim of this study was to determine the possibility of producing wheat bran enriched pasta in order to obtain high quality functional foods. It is further to determine the impact of wheat bran dietary fiber on pasta quality. 2. Materiel and methods 2.1. Raw materials Triticum durum pasta semoulina was procured from local market with a mean particle size of 250 ± 5 μm for