Effects of freeze-thaw cycles on the quality of frozen raw noodles

The effects of freeze-thaw cycles (0-8) on the quality of frozen raw noodles (FRN) were investigated. Three types of wheat flour with different protein contents were used to prepare FRN. Freeze-thaw treatment decreased the break force and increased the tensile distance of FRN with higher protein content. More mobile water and less compact microstructure were detected in FRN. Freeze-thaw cycles exerted negative effects on the cooking and texture performance of FRN indicated by increases in the cooking loss (CL) and broken noodle (BN) percentage and decreases in the hardness and chewiness. After four freeze-thaw cycles, FRN with lower protein content exhibited higher CL and BN ratios and less chewiness. The tensile distance and peak force of the gluten isolated from FRN decreased during freeze-thaw cycles, which caused the quality deterioration of FRN. FRN with higher protein content and greater gluten strength demonstrated better resistance to the freeze-thaw treatment.