Determination of Nutritional, Sensory and Biological Properties of Colored Pasta Prepared from Quinoa Grains

The present study investigates the nutritional, sensory and biological properties of colored pasta prepared from Quinoa Chenopodium quinoa grains. Four colored pasta were prepared from quinoa: White (control), red, orange and green. The sensory evaluation results indicated general acceptability of the coloured pasta compared to the white pasta (control) and commercial pasta made of durum wheat. The nutritional analysis revealed that the protein of the pasta increased by using Quinoa grains and thus the colored pasta is more nutritious than the white pasta. Orange pasta is considered a safe food for celiac patients, because it is gluten-free. Hence, the beneficial role of a Quinoa pasta diet to prevent of celiac disease was investigated in a 30 days biological study. The results revealed that the highest increase in body weight gain was noticed in rats fed orange pasta diet compared with other groups. Meanwhile, a significant increase in relative liver weight and decreased in intestine weight were observed in rats fed 10% wheat gluten. The substantial elevation of serum enzymatic activity level were significantly restored to normal in rats fed the orange pasta with10% wheat gluten compared with rat fed 10% wheat gluten. The activities of antioxidant enzymes decreased in rats fed 10% wheat gluten compared with rat fed Orange pasta. The concentrations of serum Immunoglobulin Aantibodies were significantly higher in rats fed 10% wheat gluten and restored to normal levels in rats fed orange Quinoa pasta diet with 10% wheat gluten. Histopathological studies of the intestine and liver in rats fed orange Quinoa pasta diet with 10% wheat gluten revealed minimizing changes in these organs compared with rats fed orange Quinoa pasta diet alone which showed normal histopathological structure similar to control group. It can be concluded that Quinoa pasta could be considered a safe food for celiac patients.