Color, antioxidation, and texture of dough and Chinese steamed bread enriched with pitaya peel powder

Background and objectives Intake of phytochemicals such as betalains, polyphenols, and dietary fiber is health beneficial. Pitaya peel, a by-product during fruit processing, is usually discarded. In this study, pitaya peel powder (PPP) was added to the dough of Chinese steamed bread (CSB) as a bioactive ingredient. Findings Total betacyanins, free phenolics, and DPPH radical scavenging capacity of the dough and CSB increased with increasing the PPP level from 0% to 9%. Color properties of the dough and CSB were significantly affected by the PPP level. Moreover, steaming led to significant decreases in the betacyanin content, redness, and free phenolic content of CSB. The addition of PPP led to a stiffer and less extensible dough. With increasing the level of PPP, the hardness of CSB was increased, but its specific volume, cohesiveness, springiness, and elasticity were reduced. With 3% PPP, the CSB had similar sensory scores to the control. Conclusions Healthy and colorful CSB with high phytochemicals and antioxidant capacity as well as acceptable texture can be produced by the addition of 3% PPP.