Development and Evaluation of Glycemic Index of Traditional Western Indian food Khakhara using Low Glycemic Ingredients

Khakhara or flattened bread is a popular snack item in the Guajarati cuisine. It is traditionally baked product prepared from mainly wheat flour combined with millet flour. Low glycemic index foods have shown to have several therapeutic effects on diabetes, weight management and improvement in blood lipid concentration. Thus an attempt has been made to develop Khakhara using low glycemic ingredients like barley and sprouted soya flour and evaluate its glycemic index. Khakharas were prepared from a combination of barley flour, wheat flour and sprouted soya flour (321) in 5 different variations. The variations included fenugreek leaves, coriander leaves, Amaranthus leaves, mint leaves and coriander + mint leaves. These were evaluated for its acceptability using quantitative numerical scoring method by 20 semi trained panelists. Sensory and statistical analysis revealed coriander leaves Khakhara as the most acceptable. Proximate analysis revealed energy as 402.45kcals, protein 11.6g, fat 6.28g and dietary fibre as 3.38g. The product had a shelf life of 15 days under normal storage conditions. The glycemic index of the product estimated using internationally recognised methodology on 15 healthy subjects revealed a value of 56.8 indicating Khakhara as a low glycemic food. Hence the product is recommended for diabetics as well as a wholesome snack for kids and the normal population.