Evaluation of Fatty Acid Composition in Amaranth Pasta Developed for a Vegan Diet

Consumers’ growing demand for vegan products creates a need for new nutrient-dense products. Amaranth seeds are characterised as a nutritious product due to the content of proteins, fats, etc. Considering the high-quality fats and their amount in amaranth seeds, the aim of this study was to analyse the profile of fatty acids in amaranth pasta which was developed for a vegan diet. Seven samples: amaranth, amaranth-oat, and amaranth-buckwheat pasta in different ratios, were analysed in the study. The preparation of samples for analysis was carried out according to LVS EN ISO 6498:2012; fatty acid composition was determined using the GC/MS analytic method.

The highest total fat content was determined in the amaranth pasta – 5453.62 mg 100 g⁻¹ of product, followed by the amaranth-oat pasta (85%/15%) – 4988.14 mg 100 g⁻¹ of product and amaranth-oat pasta (70%/30%) – 4772.93 mg 100 g⁻¹ of product. In the developed pasta samples, over 70% of total fat was unsaturated fatty acids and more than one-third of total fat was PUFA. The highest PUFA/SFA ratio was determined for amaranthoat pasta (70%/30%), amaranth-buckwheat pasta (85%/15%), and amaranth-buckwheat pasta (70%/30%). Quantitatively, the essential fatty acids were oleic acid, linoleic acid, and palmitic acid. The triterpene squalene was detected with a probability of 90% in all amaranth, amaranth-oat, and amaranth-buckwheat pasta samples. The developed pasta for a vegan diet contains good-quality fat.