Effects of different applications on tarhana quality

Abstract

Tarhana is a traditional Turkish fermented cereal food and is consumed as soup. The physicochemical properties of tarhana produced with different dough treatments, fermentation times, and preservation methods were examined. Tarhana doughs were prepared with only yoghurt (control) or yoghurt and baker's yeast (S. cerevisiae) as fermentation agent and fermented for 1, 2 or 3 days. Samples were then preserved via one of four methods: sun dried, dried in the shade, vacumn dried, and frozen. Increasing fermentation time resulted in a significant effect on the formation of organic acid in the tarhana. Both chemical characteristics and sensory quality of tarhana were affected by preservation methods and fermentation time. The usage of baker's yeast did not appreciably affect the sensorial properties. The soup prepared from frozen tarhana (72 hr fermentation, with yoghurt and baker's yeast) had the highest scores with respect to color, mouth feel, flavor, and overall acceptability. Vacuum-dried samples' scores in these areas were also high in comparison to the two other drying methods.