Rheological, thermal conductivity, and microscopic studies on porous-structured noodles for shortened cooking time

• Porous noodle structure was built up with maltodextrin (MD) for reducing cooking time.
• Mixing dough stability and tensile properties were improved in noodles with MD.
• Use of MD increased the thermal conductivity and softness of noodles after cooking.
• SEM images revealed the presence of pores on the surface of noodles with MD.
• The highly porous structure of noodles was advantageous to reduce cooking time.

The porous structure of wheat-based noodles was built up with maltodextrin to shorten their cooking times. The use of maltodextrin increased the water solubility of wheat flour while the pasting parameters were significantly reduced with increasing levels of maltodextrin. The Mixolab results showed that the mixing stability of wheat dough was positively enhanced by maltodextrin. When maltodextrin was incorporated into the noodle formulation, it was effective in improving the rheological characteristics of noodles by increasing their maximum force to extension and extensibility. After being cooked, the noodles with maltodextrin exhibited higher thermal conductivity and lower firmness, possibly indicating shortened cooking time. The scanning electron microscopic observation demonstrated that the use of maltodextrin produced noodles with the highly porous structure, which seems to be advantage for quick rehydration during cooking. Overall similarities in the sensory noodle attributes were observed between the control and maltodextrin (5 g/100 g) noodles.