From coarse to smooth: The beneficial effect of morphologically modified bran on the physical properties of bran-added dough and steamed buns

Although wheat bran has health benefits, its coarse texture can adversely affect the sensory and textural attributes of relevant foods, limiting its utilization. This study investigated the impact of bran treated with a morphological modification technique on the physical properties of dough and quality attributes of steamed buns for the first time. Conventionally pulverized bran (CPB) with a comparable particle size was used as a control, along with washed bran, enzyme-treated bran and bran substitutes. Morphologically modified bran (MMB) was significantly rounder and had smoother edges compared with CPB. At the 15% or 30% bran-addition level, MMB showed less protein network strength decline than CPB during dough mixing and heating, as indicated by a lower Mixolab C₁-C₂. Moreover, wheat flour containing 15% MMB had higher fractal dimension and lower lacunarity, forming a more complex and regular gluten network than CPB, and producing steamed buns with larger specific volume and lower hardness/chewiness. Furthermore, MMB exhibited significantly higher levels of water-extractable polysaccharides and ferulic acid. The results confirmed the effectiveness of morphological modification of bran in enhancing the quality of both bran-added dough and wheat-based products. These findings could facilitate innovative bran product production and healthy grain-based food diversification.