The Effect of Bread Fortification with Whole Green Banana Flour on Its Physicochemical, Nutritional and In Vitro Digestibility

The use of Whole Green Banana Flour (WGBF) in bread production may be a strategy to improve the nutritional profile of bread, but the extent of improvement may depend on the processing conditions of the flour. Therefore, WGBF was produced using two methods (freeze-drying and air-oven drying) and was used in bread-making. This study investigated the effect of flour type—FDF (WGBF produced by freeze-drying) and ODF (prepared by air-oven drying at 50 °C)—at fortification levels of 0% (control), 10%, 20%, and 30% on the fortified bread. A significant decrease in energy caloric value and an increase in moisture and fibre at >20% fortification level (p < 0.05) was noted. The ODF bread samples had a higher browning index compared to the control and the FDF samples. Addition of WGBF improved macro minerals (Mg, Ca, Na, K, and P) with a no significant change in micro minerals (Fe, Zn, and Mn). The use of FDF in bread resulted in a marked increase in resistant and slow digestible starch levels in F30 compared to ODF samples and their comparable fortification levels. The digestibility of the bread samples showed that WGBF can be used as an alternative functional ingredient to prepare bread with better nutritional value.