results in a reduction in the average molecular size of the starch molecules. Acid-thinned starch pastes tend to have a lower hot viscosity than native starch and a strong tendency to get when cooled.

The stability of a starch to an acidic low pH environment. It is determined by monitoring the change in the starches properties under defined conditions of storage.

Acid-thinned starch is usually prepared by the treatment of an aqueous starch suspension with dilute acid at a temperature below the gelatinization point. The granular form of the starch is maintained.

a process in which the surface of small particles of dry starch is wetted with water and "stuck together" during another drying process to form larger particles. This improves the dispersion or solubility in a food system to produce a "lump-free" product such as an instant pudding or gravy.

a very large, branched polymer or glucose (dextrose) which makes up part of all of the starch granule. It is composed of anhydroglucose units with the linear portions linked alpha 1,4 and the branch points linked alpha 1,6.

a linear polymer smaller than amylopection which is sometimes present in the starch granule. It is composed of anhydroglucose units linked alpha 1,4. This polymer forms a gel when starch is cooked and subsequently cooled.

Ultra high temperature cooking of a food before it is deposited in a sterile container. This process assures sterility in the food product.

When starch granules are viewed under the microscope by polarized light they exhibit a phenomenon known as birefringence - the refraction of polarized light by the intact crystalline regions to give a characteristic "Maltese cross" pattern on each granule. The disappearance of these crosses on heating a starch suspension is used to determine gelatinization temperature.

Starch that has been treated with low levels of oxidant to improve whiteness without materially affecting other key properties such as viscosity.

I device to determine the viscosity of a product by determining the amount of flow a product shows during a given amount of time. The product is placed in a try behind a trap door. The door is released and the product is allowed to flow freely for a defined amount of time. The distance traveled is defined as the Bostwick viscosity.

Brabender is the name of the manufacturer [Duisburg, Germany] of the Brabender Amylograph or Viscograph, which was the starch industry's established method for determining the viscosity characteristics of starch as it gelatinizes in water. The instrument is a rotational viscometer that allowed the continuous determination of viscosity as the initial suspension of granular starch is heated, gelatinized to a paste, then cooled under closely controlled conditions. Starch concentration, heating/cooling rates and holding periods at defined temperatures can be varied. The Brabender viscosity of a starch is not an absolute quantity; different instruments can give different results even under the "same" test conditions.

The Broofield Synchro-lectric Viscometer is a portable rotatory instrument where a rotating cylinder or disc known as the "spindle" is immersed in a test liquid and rotated by a synchronous motor. Apparent viscosity is calculated from the scale reading by use of factors that depend on spindle number (size) and roatation speed.

The apparent density of a powder or particulate product. It is the weight of a unit volume of the powder including the pores and inter-particle voids. The bulk density maybe determined on the loose unpacked powder and on the powder after tamping ('packaging') under defined conditions.

A chemical compound containing on the elements Carbon, Hydrogen and Oxygen. Cellulose, starch, sugars and polyols are typical examples. All carbohydrates contribute approximately 4Kcal/gram.

A starch which has been treated with chemicals so that some hydroxyl groups have been replaced by (usually) ester or ether groups. Crosslinking, in which two hydroxyl groups on neighboring starch molecules are linked chemically, is also a form of chemical modification. Every very low levels of chemical modification can fundamentally change the rheological-, physical-, and chemical properties of starch.