The use of starch in food systems in many instances relies on its thickening and gelling capacity. When native starches fail to match process and/or product‐specific requirements, starches are physically and/or chemically modified to meet end‐use demands. Evidently, differences between starches of varying botanical origin have to be considered when selecting or modifying starches for particular applications. Potato starch (PS) ranks third in world production after maize and wheat starches. Its unique properties differ from those of cereal and pulse starches and are directly related to its molecular structure and organization. This review summarizes the differences between PS and cereal and pulse starches and how they set it apart in terms of gelatinization, pasting, gelation, and retrogradation. Recent advances in improving PS pasting and gelation using enzyme technology and mineral ions are also described.

Potato flakes (PFs) are used in instant foods. They contain pre-gelatinized starch which readily develops viscosity upon hydration. We here provide the first report on factors influencing their viscosifying potential. Swelling power (SP) (r = 0.719, p < 0.01) and mean particle size (r = -0.704, p < 0.05) mainly determine instant viscosity development of PF suspensions while short extractable extracellular amylose molecules [degree of polymerization between 150 and 1500 (EE-AM)] positively impact their cold paste viscosity (CPV) (r = 0.717, p < 0.01) in Rapid Visco Analyzer (RVA) models. Cell wall opening by ball milling or cellulase treatments increased PF SP resulting in up to 75% higher RVA peak viscosity readings. Furthermore, the release of EE-AM molecules increased CPV by about 30% since they readily associated upon cooling. Partial cell wall opening thus improves the viscosifying potential of PFs and expands their applicability in instant foods.

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