Gluten-Free Pasta Enriched with Fish By-Product for Special Dietary Uses: Technological Quality and Sensory Properties

Gluten-free pasta enriched with fish can support a nutritive and suitable option for people with celiac disease that allows achieving the benefits of fish consumption, especially the consumption of Ω-3 fatty acids; however, this requires that the pasta has adequate technological and sensory properties. For this purpose, four optimal formulations, obtained with an iterative process, were analyzed to determine the effect of the different ingredients (yellow corn flour, white corn flour, and rice flour) in gluten-free pasta compared to commercial wheat pasta. An evaluation of the color, texture, and technological properties were conducted, and the pasta was sensorially characterized. The enriched gluten-free pasta required shorter cooking times (≈3 min) and was characterized by lower hardness, springiness, gumminess, chewiness, and fracturability, and had higher values of adhesiveness than wheat pasta. In addition, the incorporation of yellow corn gives gluten-free pasta a similarity in color to commercial pasta, with a value of ∆E between 5.5 and 8.0. Regarding the sensory analysis, gluten-free pasta was characterized by slight fishy aromas and flavors with some aftertaste compared to commercial pasta. Finally, the use of different cereals to obtain gluten-free pasta could be a good and feasible alternative despite the technological and sensory modifications observed.