Effect of Storage Time and Temperature on Rheological and Microstructural Properties of Gluten

Abstract

To investigate the effects of frozen storage on the rheological and microstructural properties of gluten, two model systems were investigated: System A, gluten and water; System B, gluten, water, and NaCl. The storage time was varied from 1 to 16 weeks and the storage temperature was varied from ‐5 to ‐30°C. After thawing, uniaxial and biaxial deformations, and stress relaxation measurements were performed on gluten. In System A, the major effects were noticed when the gluten was stored at ‐5°C. Frozen storage induced a decrease in stress and in strain at breaking, but an increase in modulus (stress/strain) under uniaxial deformation. In System B, only stress relaxation measurements showed differences between the fresh gluten and the gluten stored at ‐18°C. These results suggest that at ‐5°C, gluten strands form more entanglements. Microscopic analyses of frozen gluten showed that, during the freezing step, ice crystals compressed the gluten. A significant phase separation was observed between gluten and ice but no difference was observed between the storage time and storage temperature. However, after thawing, gluten microstructure exhibited a structure similar to the fresh gluten, and the structure looks like a sponge (a fine gluten structure with tiny water pockets).

Combined effects of freezing rate, storage temperature and time on bread dough and baking properties

“…Berglund et al (1991) found that after 24 weeks frozen storage, the gluten matrix had thinner strands, seemed more disrupted, and was separated from the starch granules. Nicolas et al (2003) observed that during freezing, ice crystals appear to compress the gluten, leading to a significant phase separation between the gluten and ice.…”

Effect of aging and ice-structuring proteins on the physical properties of frozen flour–water mixtures

“…Increasingly, the commonly accepted view of dough microstructure is being challenged by recent observations on hydrated gluten utilizing environmental-SEM and cryo-SEM. These revealed a continuous gluten phase with a collapsed structure forming a network arranged in sheets rather than fibers (Bache & Donald, 1998;Kontogiorgos & Goff, 2006;Nicolas et al, 2003;Roman-Gutierrez, Guilbert, & Cuq, 2002).…”

Frozen Convenience Noodles: Use of Ultrasound to Study the Influence of Preparation Methods on Their Rheological Parameters

“…Although freezing and frozen storage affect both primary components of dough-the gluten (Nicolas et al 2003;Wang et al 2014) and the starch (Tao et al 2016)-gluten is the main component that determines good textural and mechanical properties of the doughs, and it deteriorates during prolonged frozen storage. NMR studies showed that the fraction of water associated with the gluten matrix is more mobile and is weakly bound to dough components .…”