Effects of ohmic and microwave cooking on textural softening and physical properties of rice

The effects of two volumetric heating methods, ohmic and microwave, on consumed energy and physical properties, such as color, texture, and hydration, of a rice recipe (rice-water ratio of 1:15) were investigated and the results were compared to that of the hotplate cooking method. The textural parameters were analyzed using texture profile analysis and fitted into a previously suggested equation to obtain texture softening rate (K) and residual constant (A) values. Although the color values were negatively affected by ohmic heating, this processing method resulted in greater softening rates with the K value of 0.4 as compared to that of the traditional method with the K value of 0.2. In addition, no fouling was observed in ohmic heating and this method consumed 69 % of the required energy in the microwave process for a 50% decrease of the initial hardness of the rice grains. This innovative method could be a promising alternative to traditional rice cooking methods after further improvements.