Rheological, textural, and enzymatic hydrolysis properties of chickpea starch from a Chinese cultivar

• Rheological and textural characterizations of chickpea starch were assessed.
• Firmness of chickpea starch gel with network-like structure is correlated with the amylose fraction.
• Degradation property of chickpea starch revealed a novel source of enzyme-resistant starch.

The rheological, textural, and enzymatic hydrolysis properties of starch isolated from the seed of a Chinese chickpea cultivar were compared with corn. The chickpea starch peak, final, breakdown, and setback viscosities (2631 ± 5, 1532 ± 3, 1346 ± 2, and 247 ± 0 cP, respectively) suggest a higher stability and consistency than corn. During gelatinization, the starch granules irreversibly lost their integrity and formed a continuous amorphous structure. The gel strength increased during storage for 24 h then slowly increased until 168 h. The chickpea starch gel became firmer owing to its high amylose content. During heating, storage modulus (G′) and loss modulus (G″) of starch suspension increased rapidly above 60 °C but reduced on further heating. During cooling, G′ decreased rapidly from 95 to 75 °C then increased slowly until 25 °C, with no change in G″. The hydrolysis rate of chickpea starch was lower than that of corn starch, indicating its higher resistance to α-amylase digestibility during retrogradation.

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