Partially substituting soy, in the form of soy flour and soy milk powder, for wheat flour prevented deleterious texture changes associated with microwave heating in a study in The Journal of Food Science.

The study examined the problem of microwavable frozen baked foods becoming tough and rubbery, including when microwavable pocket-type flat dough is used to enrobe meat, vegetable and sweet items for convenient meal delivery.

The researchers from The Ohio State University and the University of Chicago added soy at levels of 10 per cent, 20 per cent and 26 per cent in microwave baking of pocket-type flat dough and compared them to conventionally baked counterparts. Soy reduced the cohesiveness of the microwave baked foods, reaching the lowest value at 20% soy addition.