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ARS Home » Southeast Area » New Orleans, Louisiana » Southern Regional Research Center » Food Processing and Sensory Quality Research » Research » Research Project #429257

Research Project: Nutritional and Sensory Properties of Rice and Rice Value-Added Products

Location: Food Processing and Sensory Quality Research

Project Number: 6054-41000-107-000-D
Project Type: In-House Appropriated

Start Date: Jul 29, 2015
End Date: Jul 27, 2020

Objective:
Objective 1: Enhance the human bioactive properties of resistant starch and slowly digestible starch in commercial table rice (milled, brown, and colored) while maintaining sensory texture characteristics. Sub-Objective 1.1. In this sub-objective research will characterize the sensory characteristics related to resistant starch, slowly digestible starch, and the optimization of healthy starch in cooked rice. Sub-Objective 1.2. Under this sub-objective several methods to produce high-resistant rice starch in flour will be examined in a baked food product. Resistant starch has many colonic health-promoting properties, but often does not formulate well as an ingredient in baked foods. Objective 2: Enable new commercial functional food products using whole grain rice and rice co-products. Sub-Objective 2.1. In joint research with CrispTek research in this sub-objective will focus on adding resistant starch, fiber, and protein to current low-oil absorbing frying batters utilizing rice foods and co-products. Nutritionally-enriched baked and fried foods will be developed that sustain sensory quality. Sub-Objective 2.2. Healthier rice milk beverages and improvement of rice bran soluble protein extraction for food and beverage use will be developed. Sub-Objective 2.3. The proposed research will develop and compare several methods to produce unique rice prebiotics combined with phenolics from blueberry pomace and spent green tea. The effectiveness of each prebiotic will be evaluated utilizing in vitro fermentations and a mouse model for colonic health.

Approach:
Rice varieties vary in amylose content that lead to differences in digestibility. Cooked table rice from different varieties will be evaluated for the amount of resistant, slowly digestible, and rapidly digestible starch based on in vitro digestion times. Thermal processes and physicochemical methods will be used to produce high resistant starch content in rice flour and starch, which will be tested as ingredients in baked foods. In collaboration with CrispTek, research will focus on adding resistant starch, fiber, and protein from rice foods and co-products to current low-oil absorbing frying batters. Nutritionally-enriched baked and fried foods will be developed with sustained or enhanced sensory qualities. Rice beverages will be developed that incorporate green technologies (e.g. focusing on raw materials and enzymatic treatments that do not rely upon previous stabilization). Lastly, methods will be evaluated to produce prebiotics from rice that include thermal and physiochemical methods and encapsulation technologies.