Starches and starch derivatives have a long history of use in snack foods, especially as functional
ingredients to help snacks achieve various textural attributes.
For example, in expanded or puffed snacks, the target texture can be obtained by changing the amylose/ amylopectin ratio by manipulating combinations of high-amylose and high-amylopectin starches according to the properties desired. High-amylose corn starches, derived from genetic hybrids of regular corn, can be used when increased crunchiness and strength are required. An effective way to increase the expansion of a snack is to add waxy corn starch, which is essentially 100% amylopectin.
One problem with high-amylopectin starch is the breakdown of amylopectin molecules by the hightemperature/ high-shear processing conditions experienced during cooker extrusion and frying.
To increase the resistance of starch molecules to break down under excessive heat and shear, specialty starch suppliers use “crosslinking” agents to chemically modify the waxy corn starch.
A crosslinked waxy corn starch exhibits controlled expansion capabilities in the puffed snacks due to the improved resistance of amylopectin to breakdown.
For snacks that expand by baking, a different modification of waxy corn starch is required. In baking, where internal temperatures of snacks increase more slowly than in extrusion or frying, pregelatinized waxy corn starches are recommended.
Pregelatinized starches have been precooked in water and then dried; they require no further cooking before baking to contribute to texture development. This is an important feature because conditions in baked expanded snacks do not allow adequate gelatinization of regular waxy starch. Pregelatinized waxy corn starch allows the expansion process to begin earlier. In addition, high-amylose starches are used to reduce oil absorption in fried snacks, due to their strong film-forming properties.
Snack foods include a broad range of products that can take many forms, and definitions of snacks are being modified to include sandwiches, yogurt, and even ice cream. These items now compete with traditional savory, bagged snacks and confectioneries. It would be impossible to cover the whole range of what could be termed snack foods.
One of the reasons is that because of geographical and cultural differences, a product that is considered a snack by one population may not be considered one by another population. In this article, snacks include only savory products, such as chips, extruded snacks, nuts, popcorn, etc., as defined by the Snack Food Association.
New generation snacks fall into the following categories:
These snack foods are triumphing because they promote a healthy image.
Starches are playing a very important role as functional ingredients to help snack foods achieve the healthy image. The following products contribute to the development of these new generation snacks.
ingredients to help snacks achieve various textural attributes.
For example, in expanded or puffed snacks, the target texture can be obtained by changing the amylose/ amylopectin ratio by manipulating combinations of high-amylose and high-amylopectin starches according to the properties desired. High-amylose corn starches, derived from genetic hybrids of regular corn, can be used when increased crunchiness and strength are required. An effective way to increase the expansion of a snack is to add waxy corn starch, which is essentially 100% amylopectin.
One problem with high-amylopectin starch is the breakdown of amylopectin molecules by the hightemperature/ high-shear processing conditions experienced during cooker extrusion and frying.
To increase the resistance of starch molecules to break down under excessive heat and shear, specialty starch suppliers use “crosslinking” agents to chemically modify the waxy corn starch.
A crosslinked waxy corn starch exhibits controlled expansion capabilities in the puffed snacks due to the improved resistance of amylopectin to breakdown.
For snacks that expand by baking, a different modification of waxy corn starch is required. In baking, where internal temperatures of snacks increase more slowly than in extrusion or frying, pregelatinized waxy corn starches are recommended.
Pregelatinized starches have been precooked in water and then dried; they require no further cooking before baking to contribute to texture development. This is an important feature because conditions in baked expanded snacks do not allow adequate gelatinization of regular waxy starch. Pregelatinized waxy corn starch allows the expansion process to begin earlier. In addition, high-amylose starches are used to reduce oil absorption in fried snacks, due to their strong film-forming properties.
Snack foods include a broad range of products that can take many forms, and definitions of snacks are being modified to include sandwiches, yogurt, and even ice cream. These items now compete with traditional savory, bagged snacks and confectioneries. It would be impossible to cover the whole range of what could be termed snack foods.
One of the reasons is that because of geographical and cultural differences, a product that is considered a snack by one population may not be considered one by another population. In this article, snacks include only savory products, such as chips, extruded snacks, nuts, popcorn, etc., as defined by the Snack Food Association.
New generation snacks fall into the following categories:
- lower fat,
- baked, not fried, and
- high-fiber products.
These snack foods are triumphing because they promote a healthy image.
Starches are playing a very important role as functional ingredients to help snack foods achieve the healthy image. The following products contribute to the development of these new generation snacks.
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