Effect of black tea on antioxidant, textural, and sensory properties of Chinese steamed bread.

Black tea is rich in phenolic antioxidants and has various health benefits. Chinese steamed bread (CSB) is a traditional food produced through steaming of fermented dough. Black tea extracts were incorporated into northern style CSB formulation at varying concentrations up to 175mg gallic acid equivalent/gram of wheat flour. Gelatinization properties of wheat flour were not affected by the black tea addition. Rheological analysis of wheat flour showed that black tea increased pasting viscosity, consistency index of flow curves, and storage modulus (G') and loss modulus (G″) during dynamic oscillation. Black tea incorporation increased the antioxidant activity as measured by chemical assays, had little effect on textural properties, and increased the darkness of CSB. Sensory evaluation showed a good overall acceptance of black tea fortified CSB.