Effect of Shearing and Annealing on the Pasting Properties of Different Starches

The functional characteristics of starch can be altered by shear force, which makes the impact on its microstructure of great importance to the food industry. This study investigated the effects of freeze-drying on the gel texture, pasting capabilities, and swelling power of starches made from sweet potatoes (SP), chickpeas (CP), and wheat (WS) combined with Cordia (CG) and Ziziphus gum (ZG). The samples were annealed in water without shearing and in a rapid visco-analyzer (RVA) for 30 min at 60 °C while being spun at 690 rpm. Both native and freeze-dried samples were mixed with 1% or 3% ZG and CG. After annealing, the starches were examined using a texture analyzer and RVA. The results showed that freeze-drying had a substantial (p > 0.05) impact on the starch granule, in addition to the effect of annealing. The peak viscosity of freeze-dried native CP and SP starches increased, but the peak viscosity of freeze-dried wheat starch decreased. The setbacks for CP and WS increased, whereas the setbacks for SP varied slightly. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that annealing in an RVA exhibited a substantially lower peak viscosity than annealing in a water bath; the RVA's shearing effect may have been the cause of this difference. Cordia gum fared better than ZG in terms of peak viscosity, although ZG significantly reduced setback in comparison to CG. Among the various blends, the native WB sample had the lowest hardness (100 ± 4.9 g), while the freeze-dried WB SP sample had the greatest (175.5 ± 4.8 g). Shearing of starches broke up the granules into smaller pieces, which made them gel at lower temperatures. This could be a good thing when they are needed for food uses that require little cooking.

Physicochemical Properties of Starch Binary Mixtures with Cordia and Ziziphus Gums

The effect of gum Cordia (GC) and gum Ziziphus (GZ) on the physicochemical properties of wheat, potato, and chickpea starches was investigated. Native or acetylated gums were mixed with starch at 2% or 5%. Starches were analyzed using rapid viscoanalyzer (RVA), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), texture analyzer, and rheometer. In the presence of gums, the data showed clear variations between the starch gels. The effects of gum acetylation on the starch characteristics were significant. According to the starch type, the peak viscosity of the gels increased depending on the gum type or concentration. With the exception of the potato starch, when gums were added, the gelatinization temperature of the starches increased. Gum acetylation significantly increased starch–gel elasticity (high G′), particularly at the 2% concentration. GC-starch gel hardness was ranked as follows: chickpea–5% native gum > wheat–5% native gum > potato–0% gum, whereas GZ followed the order of: chickpea–2% native gum > wheat–2% native gum > potato–2% native gum. Both the gums promoted reduction in syneresis for the wheat and chickpea starches. Although there was no clear trend, the Ea of the native starches was lowered overall as a result of the gums, indicating the limited effect of temperature on the rheological properties of the blends.

The Effect of Germinated Sorghum Extract on the Pasting Properties and Swelling Power of Different Annealed Starches

Starches were extracted from chickpea (C.P.), corn (C.S.), Turkish bean (T.B.), sweet potato (S.P.S.), and wheat starches (W.S.). These starches exhibited different amylose contents. The extracted starches were annealed in excess water and in germinated sorghum extract (GSE) (1.0 g starch/9 mL water). The α-amylase concentration in the GSE was 5.0 mg/10 mL. Annealing was done at 40, 50, and 60 °C for 30 or 60 min. The pasting properties of annealed starches were studied using Rapid Visco-Analyzer (RVA), in addition to the swelling power. These starches exhibited diverse pasting properties as evidenced by increased peak viscosity with annealing, where native starches exhibited peak viscosity as: 2828, 2438, 1943, 2250, and 4601 cP for the C.P., C.S., T.B., W.S., and S.P.S., respectively, which increased to 3580, 2482, 2504, 2514, and 4787 cP, respectively. High amylose content did not play a major role on the pasting properties of the tested starches because sweet potato starch (S.P.S.) (22.4% amylose) exhibited the highest viscosity, whereas wheat starch (W.S.) (25% amylose) had the least. Therefore, the dual effects of granule structure and packing density, especially in the amorphous region, are determinant factors of the enzymatic digestion rate and product. Swelling power was found to be a valuable predictive tool of amylose content and pasting characteristics of the tested starches. The studied starches varied in their digestibility and displayed structural differences in the course of α-amylase digestion. Based on these findings, W.S. was designated the most susceptible among the starches and S.P.S. was the least. The most starch gel setback was observed for the legume starches, chickpeas, and Turkish beans (C.P. 2553 cP and T.B. 1172 cP). These results were discussed with regard to the underlying principles of swelling tests and pasting behavior of the tested starches. Therefore, GSE is an effortless economic technique that can be used for starch digestion (modification) at industrial scale.

Use of Hydrocolloid Gums to Modify the Pasting, Thermal, Rheological, and Textural Properties of Sweet Potato Starch

Effect of hydrocolloids (arabic, xanthan, cress seed, fenugreek, flaxseed, and okra gums) at 0.5 and 2.0% concentrations on sweet potato starch pasting, viscoelastic, textural, and thermal properties was studied. Rapid Visco Analyzer (RVA) measurements showed that the final viscosity was increased as a function of gum irrespective of their concentration except with cress seed gum. Dynamic rheological data revealed that the magnitude of the moduli was increased as a function of angular frequency and no crossovers were perceived among them. Consistency coefficient (k) was decreased by the addition of any gum and also with increasing concentration of gums except with xanthan gum at 25°C. Flow behavior index (n) data showed that starch gum blends possessed more pseudoplastic shear thinning behavior than those for the control at 25°C and pseudoplasticity was further increased with increasing concentration of xanthan, fenugreek, flaxseed, and okra gums. Texture analysis data displayed that after overnight storage of starch gels at room temperature, hardness was significantly increased by the addition of gums except for xanthan. Differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) profile showed that enthalpy was decreased by the inclusion of xanthan gum.

Dynamic rheological properties of corn starch-date syrup gels

The rheological, pasting, and gel textural properties of corn starch blended with date syrup (DS) or sugar (SG) were studied. The average amylose content of the starch was 27.8%. Corn starch gel is considered elastic since the elastic modulus (G') was much greater than the viscous modulus (G″). Different effect between DS and SG on corn starch gel was observed, where SG addition and DS replacement experiments exhibited the highest G'. The tan δ of all samples was in the range of 0.02-0.20 indicating elastic behavior since it is less than unity. The hardness of starch gel ranged from 13 to 146 g and 212-145 for DS replacement and DS addition, respectively. Unlike the replacement experiment, the addition experiment exhibited significant increase in peak viscosity, setback and pasting temperature (p > 0.05). The magnitude of the effect of DS on corn starch gel was more evident compared to SG. This was apparent by looking at the slopes of the linear regression of the log of G' or G″ versus the log of frequency. Based on the information provided here, date syrup application can expand to cover the baking and beverage industries.