SORGHUMS WITH IMPROVED TORTILLA MAKING CHARACTERISTICS

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Color of tortillas prepared from grain of 38 sorghum cultivars by a laboratory procedure varied, from a light yellowish to dark‐greenish brown. The cooking time and grinding properties of sorghum were affected by kernel size, texture, and structure. Corneous sorghum kernels required longer cooking time than soft, floury kernels. Native sorghums of Honduras and Guatemala with white or colorless pericarp without a testa gave the lightest color tortillas, and had the best overall potential for use in tortilla production. Considerable variation exists among white sorghums. Brown sorghums as expected, produced unacceptable brown‐green tortillas with poor taste. Red sorghums, produced tortillas with a dark, unacceptable color. A simple alkali test using five kernels was used to screen white seeded sorghums from the world collection for alkali color formation. Good correlation between the alkali test and tortilla color was obtained. The test is useful in breeding programs to select sorghum with improved potential for use in tortillas and other high pH products.