Influence of Gum Arabic from <i>Acacia Senegal</i> var. <i>kerensis</i> on the Modifications of Pasting and Textural Properties of Cassava and Corn Starches

The use of hydrocolloids to modify the properties of native starches has been on the rise in the recent times due to the market demand for natural, safe and economical food ingredients. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of gum Arabic from Acacia senegal var. kerensis to modify pasting and textural properties of corn and cassava starches, as an alternative to chemical and enzymatic modification. Blends were prepared by substituting the starches with gum at different levels (0%, 0.5%, 2.0%, 4.0%, 6.0% and 8.0%), whereas native corn and cassava starches were used as control. The pasting properties of the starch-gum mixed systems were determined using the Brabender viscograph while the textural properties (firmness, consistency, cohesiveness and work of cohesion) were determined using Texture Analyzer. Results showed that the gum Arabic significantly decreased all the viscosity parameters (peak viscosity, final viscosity, break down and setback values) of both starches at all levels of substitution. However, there was no significant effect of gum Arabic on the pasting temperature (72.05°C - 71.85°C) for corn starch and (68.90°C - 68.65°C) for cassava starch. The degree of gel firmness and consistency was higher in corn starch than in cassava starch and the effect of gum addition differed with each starch. The findings from this study indicate that gum Arabic significantly modified the pasting and textural properties of corn and cassava starches due to strong interaction between the gum and the starches. Hence, this property of gum Arabic could be useful in controlling starch retrogradation and determining starch end use functionality.