INFLUENCE OF PROTEIN CONTENT ON SOME DURUM WHEAT QUALITY PARAMETERS

The influence of protein content on some durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) quality parameters was investigated for two Canadian durum wheats of differing spaghetti-making quality. A substantial increase in semolina yellow pigment content was observed for one of the two durum wheats as protein content increased. For both cultivars, a moderate increase in protein content was accompanied by a marked decrease in farinogram mixing time concomitant with an increase in maximum consistency and tolerance index. Cooking quality and tolerance to overcooking continued to improve as protein increased for both cultivars over the complete range of protein content examined. For both durum wheats, the proportion of non-gluten protein (the albumins and globulins) decreased significantly with increasing protein content. Gluten characteristics, as measured by the Berliner turbidity test, appeared to improve as protein increased. However, this improvement could not be related to the Osborne solubility distribution of the glu...