Influence of drying and hydrothermal treatment of corn on the denaturation of salt-soluble proteins and color parameters

► The effect of drying temperature and moisture content on the denaturation of corn proteins and change of color was studied. ► Both temperatures and moisture affected the corn proteins. ► Colors measured were highly correlated with the denaturation and could be used as indicators of excessive heat treatment. ► First and second order kinetics models were applied to forecast the denaturation of protein. ► The reaction rates calculated both depend on the temperature and the moisture of grains.