Dough rheological properties, texture, and structure of high-moisture starch hydrogels with different potassium-, and calcium-based compounds

The effects of four kinds of potassium-(potassium alginate, PA; potassium dihydrogen phosphate, KDP) and calcium-based (calcium carbonate, CC; calcium silicate, CSi) compounds on the pasting behavior, rheological properties, microstructure, water mobility, and textural characteristics of pastes, dough, and high-moisture starch hydrogels from potato starch were evaluated. The results showed that the addition of 0.5% CSi, 0.5% CC, 0.4% PA and 0.4% KDP (w/w, total starch basis) significantly improved the tensile strength of high-moisture starch hydrogels compared to that of pure potato starch. Further discussion about the mechanism revealed that the addition of these components could reduce the swelling capacity and peak viscosity of potato starch during heating, further enhance the network structure of the starch dough, and reduce the water mobility thereof, thus contributing to a compact stacking of starch and smaller and denser pore structure of the high-moisture starch hydrogels. This study provides a theoretical basis for the formulation design of alum-free hydrogel derived products.