Abstract: To effectively obtain high-quality wheat aleurone layer flour suitable for food processing, the effects of milling speed and mesh size on the nutritional and functional components of wheat aleurone layer flour were investigated, and the optimal separation parameters were developed by grey correlation analysis (GCA). The effects of adding 0%–30% wheat aleurone layer flour (based on the weight of wheat flour) on the nutritional composition and thermodynamic characteristics of wheat flour, and the thermomechanical and dynamic rheological properties of dough were studied. The results showed that the optimal separation parameters for wheat aleurone layer flour were 4 000 r/min and 80-mesh, which provided a high yield of wheat aleurone layer flour, rich in crude protein, total dietary fiber and alkyl resorcinol. With increasing addition of wheat aleurone layer flour from 0% to 30%, the contents of moisture and starch continuously reduced, and the contents of ash, crude protein, total dietary fiber, crude fat, total polyphenol and alkyl resorcinol increased. Moreover, addition of wheat aleurone layer flour improved the gelatinization stability and viscoelasticity of flour and delayed the retrogradation of dough, consequently improving its processing properties. The findings of this study contribute to maximizing the development of the nutritional and processing properties of wheat aleurone layer flour, improving its processing performance and promoting the utilization of wheat by-products.

Key words: wheat aleurone layer flour; wheat flour; dietary fiber; dynamic rheological properties; grey correlation analysis