Effect of dry heat treatment on the physicochemical properties and structure of proso millet flour and starch

• Proso millet flour and starch were heated in a dry state at 130 °C for 2 or 4 h.
• Dry heat treatment (DHT) increased the pasting viscosity of the flour significantly.
• The pasting viscosity increased but endothermic enthalpy and crystallinity decreased.
• The gel structure became more compact and the particles were plumper after DHT.
• X-ray diffraction patterns of the flour and starch remained the same after DHT.

Proso millet (Panicum miliaceum L.) flour and starch were heated in a dry state at 130 °C for 2 or 4 h. The effects of dry heat treatment (DHT) on the pasting, morphological and structural properties of the samples were evaluated. Dry heat treatment had a more significant effect on the pasting viscosity of flour than starch; it increased the pasting viscosity of the flour while it only increased the final viscosity of the starch. After dry heating, the onset of gelatinization and the peak temperatures of the samples increased significantly while the endothermic enthalpy decreased. Scanning electron microscopy showed that the gel structure of the samples became more compact and the particles were plumper when compared with the native ones. Crystallinity of the samples decreased while the X-ray diffraction patterns remained the same after DHT.