https://doi.org/10.17113/ftb.64.02.26.9220

Impact of Egg Components on Model Pasta Dough Rheology, Microstructure, and Mechanical Dough Rolling Energy

Berkay Berk¹, Şelale Öncü Glaue² and Sevcan Ünlütürk^1*

¹Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Izmir Institute of Technology, İzmir, Türkiye

²Food Processing Department, Efes Vocational School, Dokuz Eylül University, İzmir, Türkiye

Copyright © 2026 This is a Diamond Open Access article published under CC-BY licence. Copyright remains with the authors, who grant third parties the unrestricted right to use, copy, distribute and reproduce the article as long as the original author(s) and source are acknowledged.

Food Technol. Biotechnol. 2026; 64(2): pp. 174-185.


Article history:

Received: 6 June 2025

Accepted: 7 December 2025

Keywords:

egg; pasta dough; linear rheology; non-linear rheology; extensional rheology; rolling

The content of this publication has not been approved by the United Nations and does not reflect the views of the United Nations or its officials or Member States.

Summary:

Research background. Pasta is a widely consumed food usually made from durum wheat semolina. During production of pasta, dough kneading is the first step and varying degrees of deformation are applied to the dough. These deformations are related to the rheological properties of the pasta dough, which are affected by its ingredients.

Experimental approach. In this study, three types of model pasta dough were prepared using water, whole eggs or egg yolks. To evaluate their properties, linear, nonlinear by large amplitude oscillatory shear (LAOS) and extensional rheological tests were conducted. The energy required during dough rolling was linked to the rheological properties of the dough samples.

Results and conclusions. The results showed that the energy required during rolling is strongly correlated with crossover strain, oscillatory viscoelastic moduli, creep recovery compliances and extensional consistency coefficient. The addition of whole egg and egg yolk increased the rigidity of the model dough (plain: 6.32 kPa, whole egg: 28.48 kPa and yolk: 117.05 kPa Young’s modulus). The work done during rolling increased with the addition of egg (plain: 15.19 J, whole egg: 27.14 J and yolk: 33.02 J). After rolling, samples were cut, cooked, and their microstructure was evaluated. The effect of the addition of an egg on the microstructure of samples was observed as a lipid-coated, smoother surface and strong formation of a protein network.

Novelty and scientific contribution. This study provides a comprehensive rheological characterisation of model pasta dough formulated with a whole egg or egg yolk using linear, nonlinear, and extensional tests. By linking these rheological properties to the mechanical energy required during rolling, the study introduces a novel approach to quantitatively predict processing behaviour from fundamental dough mechanics. The findings also highlight how egg yolk significantly enhances dough rigidity and alters microstructure, contributing to improved understanding of ingredient-function relationship in pasta formulation.