Influence of cassia gum on rheological and textural properties of native potato and corn starch

Pasting, rheological, and textural properties of potato and corn starch pastes and gels with different amounts of cassia gum were investigated. Significant effect of cassia gum on pasting characteristic of the starches was found. A decrease and an increase in peak viscosity of potato and corn starch systems, respectively, was observed with increase in cassia gum concentration. The final viscosity, extent of breakdown and setback viscosity were increasing with increasing cassia gum level in both starch systems. The effect of cassia gum on steady flow behavior of the starch pastes differed among the starches. However, all the systems with higher cassia gum concentration exhibited higher shear stress values than their control counterparts. The starch-cassia gum systems were classified as weak gels and their elastic properties were decreasing by the amount of cassia gum. Presence of cassia gum resulted in changes in textural properties of the starch gels, however, the changes were not always consistent with the increase in cassia gum concentration.