Quality Evaluation Systems and Methods of the Whole Making Process of Asian Noodles: A Review

Noodles have been a staple food in Asian countries for more than 4,000 years, and almost 40% of wheat cultivated in Asia is consumed in the form of noodles. Existing standard for inspection and evaluation systems focus on the quality of ingredients, dough, semi-finished and final products of flour products with high moisture content (such as bread). However, Asian noodles are flour products with low moisture content, and no unified method is available for evaluating the quality of noodle-making process. This review summarizes the current process of making Asian noodles and the various methods to evaluate the quality of ingredients, semi-finished, and finished products. The methods for analyzing the quality of special flour, processing of crumbly dough and dough sheets, dried, semi-dried and cooked Asian noodles are also described. Overall, important directions and recommendations for the research and development in terms of efficient processing and quality control of Asian noodles are presented.