Small-scale microwave cooking-based procedure for evaluation of injera-making quality of sorghum genotypes

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES : Evaluation of the injera-making quality of sorghum and teff genotypes is problematic because of the large quantity of grain required to make injera using the conventional full-scale method. This study evaluated a small-scale microwave cooking-based injera making procedure. Eight lines expressing waxy and high protein digestibility traits and three normal-type sorghums were used. Freshly prepared and stored injeras were evaluated using instrumental texture analysis. FINDINGS : The stress and strain data of fresh and stored injeras from the microwave procedure significantly (p < .01) correlated with those from the full-scale method: Stress: fresh injera (r = 0.725), 2-days stored (r = 0.741), 4-days stored (r = 0.852); Strain: fresh injera (r = 1.000), 2-days stored (r = 1.000), 4-days stored (r = 0.999). CONCLUSIONS : The small-scale microwave procedure uses much less grain and correlates with the full-scale method. SIGNIFICANCE AND NOVELTY : The small-scale microwave procedure should enable screening of considerably larger numbers of genotypes for injera-making quality.