RESEARCH ARTICLE Effect of the Amount and Particle Size of Wheat Fiber on the Physicochemical Properties and Gel Morphology of Starches

Effects of added wheat fiber, with different levels and particle sizes, on the physicochemical properties and gel morphology of wheat starch and mung bean starch were investigated, using rapid visco analyzer (RVA), texture analyzer (TPA) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Each starch was added with wheat fiber at 10, 20, 30 and 40 % (weight basis, g/100g), and different sizes of 60, 100 and 180 mesh, respectively. The peak viscosity (PV) of starches with wheat fiber were higher than the control. Starches had the highest PV with 40%, 60 mesh wheat fiber. The starches with wheat fiber showed higher hardness when compared to the control. Wheat starch and mung bean starch, with 40%, 60 mesh wheat fiber, had the highest hardnesses of 147.78 and 1032.11g, respectively. SEM showed that the dense honeycomb structure of starch gel was diminished with increasing wheat fiber. Additionally, the number of internal pores was reduced, and a large lamellar structure was formed