Sensory, physicochemical, and cooking qualities of instant noodles fortified with red seaweed, eucheuma denticulatum

Instant noodles are widely consumed worldwide, but frequent consumption of instant noodles is unhealthy. Therefore, in the present study, instant noodles were produced with composite flour (blend of wheat flour and potato starch at weight ratios of 9:1, 8:2, and 7:3) incorporated with red seaweed powder, Eucheuma denticulatum in proportions of 0, 5, 7.5, 10, 12.5, and 15%. The cooking qualities, physicochemical (textural properties, pH, color, water activity), and sensory properties of the noodles were then determined. The incorporation of 7.5 - 15% of seaweed powder had significantly (p<0.05) increased the cooking yield and reduced the cooking loss but lengthened the optimum cooking time of noodles. The pH values and water activity of noodles had been significantly (p