Characteristics of whole wheat steamed bread production by two-stage fermentation procedure with Jiaozi as starter

Given the beneficial role of biological acidification in improving the quality of cereal-based products, this study evaluated the applicability of Jiaozi as a starter for whole wheat dough fermentation and steamed bread quality improvement. During the first 12 h of dough fermentation, yeast and lactic acid bacteria (LAB) populations increased significantly, resulting in rapid carbohydrate consumption and acidification of the dough. The lactic/acetic acid molar ratio was approximately 3.3, which was within the recommended fermentation quotient (FQ). Compared with the unfermented dough and the dough fermented for 12 h, the dough fermented for 6 h had an improved protein network structure, and the steamed bread made from it also showed the best quality. At a low leavening temperature of 28 °C, satisfactory specific volume and height/diameter ratio were obtained. The dough with an inoculation amount of 50% of the fully fermented dough showed the highest CO₂ production capacity. Compared with yeast, the whole wheat steamed bread produced by Jiaozi using the two-stage fermentation process showed higher specific volume, resistant starch (RS) content and protein digestibility. The results showed that the use of Jiaozi as a starter has great potential for application in improving the quality of whole wheat steamed bread.