Composition, texture, sensorial quality, and biological activity after in vitro digestion of durum wheat pasta enriched with carrot waste extract encapsulates

Aim of this research was to evaluate durum-wheat pasta enriched with encapsulated carrot waste extracts in oil, obtained by freeze drying (FDE) or spray drying techniques (SDE). Five pastas (control, enriched with 10% FDE, or 10% SDE, or 20% FDE, or 20% SDE) were evaluated for furosine, carotenoids, tocols, colour, in vitro bioactivities, cooking performance, texture and sensory quality. The encapsulates added to the enriched pastas α-carotene (0.58–1.24 mg/kg), β-carotene (1.43–3.29 mg/kg), cis-β-carotene (0.51–1.11 mg/kg) and total tocols (10.9–33.6 mg/kg). The carotenes were stable and the tocols diminished (-13%) during pasta manufacturing; both decreased (2–18% and 4–15%, respectively) during cooking, but they were still more abundant in the enriched pastas. Antioxidant, anti-hyperglycaemic, anti-inflammatory and anti-proliferative activities after in vitro digestion of cooked pastas improved, while sensory acceptability of control and 10% enriched pastas were similar. The encapsulates addition significantly improved the nutritional and technological qualities of durum-wheat pasta.