Development of microencapsulated rice bran to improve the quality of infant rice cereal

This study aimed to enhance the nutritional value, functional performance, and storage stability of organic brown rice-based infant cereal by incorporating Microencapsulated Rice Bran (MRB). Unlike the direct addition of rice bran (RB), which often compromises sensory quality and reconstitution properties, RB was enzymatically treated with α-amylase and cellulase to achieve partial hydrolysis prior to microencapsulation, and then encapsulated using maltodextrin (MD), whey protein isolate (WPI), and phospholipids. This pretreatment facilitated structural breakdown and improved protein accessibility. The optimal microencapsulation conditions (MD:WPI = 1:1, 20 % wall addition, 1.5 % phospholipids) yielded stable emulsions with high encapsulation efficiency. Powder viscosity reduced from 27.67 cP to 19.67 cP, water solubility index increased from 16.75 % to 60.70 %, peroxide value lowered from 23.174 mmol/kg to 11.589 mmol/kg after storage, and gelatinization enthalpy significantly increased from 116.76 J/g to 228.02 J/g, indicating markedly improved flowability, oxidative, and thermal stability. When incorporated at 8 % into infant cereal, MRB not only significantly improved the nutritional composition (1.11-fold higher protein, 1.87–2.92-fold higher fat) with better sensory quality, reconstitution properties, and flowability compared to cereals with unencapsulated RB. In vitro digestion showed 1.10-fold higher protein and 1.07-fold higher starch digestibility, attributed to smaller particle size and enhanced enzymatic accessibility. Overall, this approach overcomes the key limitations of direct RB incorporation, offering a promising approach to developing nutrient-dense, high-quality infant foods. • Whey protein, maltodextrin, and phospholipids enabled rice bran microencapsulation. • Optimized MRB improved oxidative stability during storage. • Adding 8 % MRB enhanced nutrition and digestibility of infant cereal. • Final cereal had lower viscosity, faster reconstitution, and better flowability.