Food Applications of Pea Starch - Northern Pulse Growers Association

NORTHERN CROPS INSTITUTE
Food Applications of Pea
Starch
Northern Pulse Growers Association
6/28/2013

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Frying Batter Experiment ............................................................................................................... 2
Pea Starch Noodle Experiment ....................................................................................................... 4
Gluten-Free Baking with Pea Starch Experiment ........................................................................... 6
Pea Starch as Thickener For Soups and Sauces ............................................................................ 12
Teriyaki Sauce ........................................................................................................................... 12
Mornay Sauce ............................................................................................................................ 13
Dry Chili Mix ............................................................................................................................ 14
Cut Marshmallow.......................................................................................................................... 16
Soft Candies Experiment .............................................................................................................. 19
1

FRYING BATTER EXPERIMENT
Objective: To evaluate the functionality of pea starch in batter for frying system.
Materials and Methods:
Batter Preparation
Nine treatments varying in the amount of wheat flour, corn starch and pea starch were evaluated
(Table 1). The batter was composed of 0.85:1 solid to water ratio. Water was kept at 50°F. The
batters were prepared by blending the dry ingredients with water (50°F) and mixed with the
paddle attachment at speed 1 for 30 seconds. The batter was mixed for additional 1.5 min at
speed 5 (Professional Kitchen Aid Mixer 6-quart).
Table 1. The solid formulations of batter treatments, shown in percentage.
Ingredients 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
All-purpose flour 95.2 0 0 71.4 71.4 47.6 47.6 23.8 23.8
Corn starch 0 95.2 0 23.8 0 47.6 0 71.4 0
Pea starch 0 0 95.2 0 23.8 0 47.6 0 71.4
Salt 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3
Baking powder 1.8 1.8 1.8 1.8 1.8 1.8 1.8 1.8 1.8
Nonfat dry milk 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8
Frying
Samples were deep fat fried at 350°F in commercial bench-top deep fat fryer, containing 2.5
gallon of oil. Samples were fried in peanut oil for 9 min.
Analysis of samples
The amount of batter adhering to the sample during immersion of coating prior to frying was
considered as the batter pick up. It was calculated as the weight of coating picked up by a nugget,
divided by the weight of non-coated nugget times 100. The samples were subjected to an
informal blind sensory evaluation (5 participants). The panel was asked to rate each quality
attribute between 1-9, where 1 being Dislike Extremely, and 9 being Like Extremely.
Results
Results are provided in Table 2. From this preliminary study, we found that pea starch is suitable
for frying batter application. Compared to corn starch, pea starch has slightly better batter
pickup, and provides products with crispier texture. Treatment 5 (3:1 wheat to pea starch) was
rated the overall best product, followed by Treatment 6 (1:1 wheat to corn starch).
2

Products from treatment 1-3 (100% usage of wheat flour, corn starch, and pea starch) were
unacceptable. Wheat flour alone did not provide crispiness to the fried fish. Corn and pea starch
did not hold the fish together during frying, and similar problems occurred in treatment 8-9
where the starches were used in high percentage.
In conclusion, pea starch is suitable for batter frying application. When pea starch was
incorporated into the batter, the coating became crispier compared to the corn starch. The
recommended amount is 3:1 wheat to pea starch.
Table 2. Batter pickup and informal sensory evaluation results.
Treatment 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Batter pickup (%) 42 11 11 21 24 23 24 12 17
Coating color (1-9) 3.8 7.8 7.8 8.8 8.8 9.0 9.0 8.5 8.8
Coating amount (1-9) 6.5 6.0 6.0 7.3 8.5 9.0 7.5 6.8 6.8
Coating crispness (1-9) 4.0 5.0 5.3 6.3 7.8 8.5 6.5 4.5 6.3
Coating flavor (1-9) 5.5 5.5 6.5 7.0 7.5 7.0 6.8 6.0 6.8
Fish tenderness (1-9) 4.3 4.0 4.3 5.8 7.3 7.3 6.0 3.5 4.3
Fish moistness (1-9) 4.8 3.8 3.8 5.8 7.3 7.5 5.5 3.3 4.3
Fish flavor (1-9) 6.8 5.8 5.3 7.3 7.7 8.0 5.3 4.5 5.3
Overall (1-9) 4.5 4.8 5.0 6.8 7.8 7.3 5.8 4.8 5.5
Figure 1.Treatments of fried fish.
1 Wheat flour
4 Wheat/corn 3:1
7 Wheat/pea 1:1
2 Corn starch
5 Wheat/pea 3:1
Wheat/pea
8 Wheat/corn
1:3
3 Pea starch
6 Wheat/corn 1:1
3
9 Wheat/pea 1:3

PEA STARCH NOODLE EXPERIMENT
Objective: To understand the functionality of pea starch in starch noodle, when compared to
mung bean starch and potato starch.
Materials and Methods: Preliminary experiments were conducted to develop an acceptable
noodle formulation and process. Cooking analysis was conducted on the starch noodles.
Procedures to make the batter:
Table 1. Starch noodle batter formulations, shown in gram.
Step 1 Mung bean Potato Pea
Starch 11.25 11.25 11.25
Water 175 140 140
Step 2
Starch 238.5 238.5 238.5
Water 174.7 78 174.2
1. Combine starch and water from step 1.
2. Heat the starch mixture until thick and fully gelatinized.
3. Combine the starch from step 2 with step 1 mixture.
4. Mix and slowly add water from step 2.
5. Continue mixing until the right texture is achieved.
*The right texture can be tested by scooping the batter with a spoon. When you drop the
batter, the batter should be sticky enough, and should make a continuous thin stream from the
spoon. The string should not break while streaming. If breaking, the water has to be adjusted.
Procedures to make the noodle:
1. Using a large pot, boil hot water.
2. Put the batter inside the noodle press or squeeze bottle.
*For making the noodle, a noodle press or a squeeze bottle can be used. In this experiment, we
used a squeeze bottle.
3. When the hot water is boiled vigorously, squeeze the batter directly into the water for 15
seconds. Boil the noodle for 30 seconds to 1 min.
4. Soak and wash noodle in cold water for 1 min.
5. Hang noodles and dry overnight at room temperature.
Noodle cooking evaluation:
1. The noodle was cooked until completely soft, and starches completely disappeared from the
core of the noodle.
2. The noodles were evaluated for the weight gained after cooking (cooked weight), and loss of
the water-soluble material to the cooking water (cook loss).
4

Results: The cooking results and pictures of the starch noodles are provided in Table 2 and
Figure 1. Mung bean and potato are the traditional source of starch use to make Asian starch
noodle (also known as Cellophane noodles, Chinese vermicelli, bean threads, bean thread
noodles, crystal noodles, or glass noodles). The results from this study demonstrated that pea
starch is suitable for making starch noodle. The functionality of pea starch noodle is close to
Mung bean starch noodle. Mung bean starch provides firmer texture, slightly longer cooking
time and slightly lower cook loss (Table 2).
Table 2. Results of noodle cooking evaluation.
Optimum cooking Mung bean Potato Pea
Cook time (min) 15.0 13.5 14.5
Water absorption (%) 148.3 256.7 175.7
Cook loss (%) 0.3 5.9 1.1
Overcooking (+5 min)
Cook time (min) 20 18.5 19.5
Water absorption (%) 180 208 229
Cook loss (%) 0.4 14.6 1.2
Figure 1. Starch noodles made from pea starch, potato starch, and mung bean starch.
Pea starch Potato starch Mung bean starch
5

GLUTEN-FREE BAKING WITH PEA STARCH EXPERIMENT
Objectives: Part 1: To understand if pea starch can be used to replace other gluten-free (GF)
flour in muffin and cookie application, Part 2: To evaluate which kind of starch/flour pea starch
can replace in GF muffin and cookie applications, and at what level.
Materials and Methods: Part 1 : This is a preliminary experiment to see whether pea starch can
be used to replace other starch/flour in muffin (Table 1) applications. For this experiment, a GF
muffin recipe was selected. Then, each starch/flour was taken out of the recipe and completely
replaced with pea starch.
Table 1. Part 1 formulations of GF muffins of various treatments, shown in gram.
Ingredients Control
w/o Lentil
flour w/o Rice w/o Potato
w/o
Tapioca
Pregel Lentil Flour 37 0 37 37 37
Rice Flour 25 25 0 25 25
Potato Starch 42 42 42 0 42
Tapioca Flour 30 30 30 30 0
Pea Starch 0 37 25 42 30
Sugar 130 130 130 130 130
Butter 109 109 109 109 109
Eggs (4 Eggs) 100 100 100 100 100
Vanilla 2 2 2 2 2
Heavy Cream 60 60 60 60 60
Baking Powder 4.4 4.4 4.4 4.4 4.4
Salt 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6
Part 2: This study looked at the optimal amount of pea starch that can be incorporated in GF
muffin and cookie application.
Table 3. Part 2 formulations of GF muffin, shown in gram.
Ingredients 1 2 3 4 5
Pea Starch - 30 60 60 90
Pregel Lentil
Flour
30 30 30 30 30
Rice Flour 30 30 - 30 -
Potato Starch 30 30 30 - -
Tapioca Starch 30 - - - -
Sugar 130 130 130 130 130
Butter 109 109 109 109 109
Eggs (4 Eggs) 100 100 100 100 100
Heavy Cream 60 60 60 60 60
Baking Powder 4.4 4.4 4.4 4.4 4.4
Salt 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6
6

Table 3. Part 2 formulations of GF cookies, shown in gram.
Ingredients 1 2 3 4 5
Butter, Softened 149 149 149 149 149
Brown Sugar 98 98 98 98 98
Granulated Sugar 98 98 98 98 98
Egg 100 100 100 100 100
Xanthan Gum 3.3 3.3 3.3 3.3 3.3
Pregel Pea Flour 100 100 100 100 100
Rice Flour 60 60 - 60 -
Potato Starch 60 60 60 - -
Tapioca Starch 30 - - - -
Pea Starch - 30 90 90 150
Baking Powder 4.7 4.7 4.7 4.7 4.7
Baking Soda 5.4 5.4 5.4 5.4 5.4
Salt 2.8 2.8 2.8 2.8 2.8
Procedures for making GF muffin
1 Make sure that all the ingredients are at room temperature.
2 Using a paddle attachment, cream sugar and butter on speed 8 for 30 seconds,
scrape and mix for 1 min.
3 Scrape the bowl. Add eggs and vanilla. Mix for 2 min on speed 8.
4 Scrape the bowl. Add heavy cream. Mix for 1 min on speed 8.
5 Add flours, baking powder, and salt. Mix at speed 5 for 30 second, scrape, and
mix for 1 min.
6 Fold in chocolate chips.
7 Scoop the dough into a muffin liner. Fill it to the rim. About 74g/ cup.
8 Bake at 370F for 21 min in convection oven.
Procedures for making GF cookies
1 Cream butter and sugar (speed 8 for 30 sec). Add eggs and vanilla and mix at speed 10 for 1
min.
2 Sift together all the dry ingredients. Gradually add the dry ingredients to wet ingredients
(speed 8 for 1 min).
3 Add xanthan gum and mix at speed 8 for 1 min.
4 Drop a spoonful of dough onto a greased cookie sheet, about 33-35g.
5 Flatten the top of the dough slightly
* The dough spreads very little, flattening is necessary.
6 Bake for 8-10 min at 375F in the convection oven or until light golden brown.
7 Cool on the cookie sheet.
7

Results
Part 1:
There are four different flours in the GF muffin formulation. In part 1, each type of flour was
replaced with pea starch and evaluated. We found that there are very slight differences in product
quality when pea starch are used to replace tapioca starch, rice flour, and potato starch, when
compared to the control. The texture of the control muffin was the most crumbly. The muffin
with rice flour and potato starch replaced had the best texture (soft, and not crumbly), and
appearance. By replacing all the lentil flour with pea starch, the product was not acceptable.
Figure 1. Side view of part 1 treatments.
w/o Tapioca w/o Rice w/o Potato Control w/o lentil flour
Figure 2. Top view of part 1 treatments.
Control
w/o lentil flour
w/o Tapioca starch w/o Rice flour w/o Potato
starch
8

Figure 3. Crumb texture of part 1 treatments.
Control
w/o Lentil flour
w/o Tapioca starch w/o Rice flour w/o Potato starch
Part 2, GF Muffin:
The levels of pea starch that can be used in GF muffin were evaluated. In GF muffin, all
treatments had good flavor. Treatment 2 (replacing tapioca starch) and 4 (replacing both potato
starch and tapioca starch) were very moist and had the best appearance and texture. Treatment 3
(replacing rice flour and tapioca starch) and 5 (rice flour, tapioca starch, and potato starch) had
good flavor, but flat top with light, dry, and crumbly texture. When using high amount of any
kind of starch in GF muffin, the texture became lighter, more similar to cake texture. From this
experiment, we found that pea starch functions in GF muffin remarkably well and can be used in
place of other commonly used GF starches and flours. With this recipe, the recommended
amount of pea starch is 56% of the total flour.
Figure 4. Side view of part 2 GF muffin treatments.
1 2 3 4 5
9

Figure 5. Top view of part 2 GF muffin treatments.
1 2 3 4 5
Figure 6. Crumb texture of part 2 GF muffin treatments.
1 2 3 4 5
Part 2, cookie:
Pea starch was used to replace combinations of tapioca starch, rice flour, and potato starch in GF
cookies. All treatments were acceptable and had nice flavor. Treatment 1, 3, and 4 had the best
appearance. Treatment 4 and 5 were noted to have the best flavor. Treatment 3 had the best
overall qualities and the best texture. From this experiment, we found that pea starch is suitable
for replacing tapioca starch, potato starch, and rice flour in GF cookie application.
Figure 7. Crumb texture of part 2 cookie treatments.
1 2 3 4 5
10

Figure 8. Top view of part 2 GF cookie treatments.
1 2 3 4 5
11

PEA STARCH AS THICKENER FOR SOUPS AND SAUCES
Objective: To evaluate pea starch for soup and sauces applications, and to develop formulations.
Teriyaki sauce
Table 1. Formulation of Teriyaki sauce.
Ingredient
Grams
Sauce
Soy sauce 48
Light brown sugar 23
Apple cider vinegar 7
Garlic powder (fine) 0.7
Minced onion 0.7
Worcestershire sauce 0.3
Starch mixture
Pea starch 3.5
Water 10
Procedure:
1. Combine all the ingredients except starch mixture and heat until boiling
(100 o C), then add well-mixed starch mixture into the sauce and heat for
13 min at temperature around 80-90 o C. Watch the temperature since the
mixture can easily burn.
2. Stir 100g of broccoli and 100g of chicken (optional) with 1 tbsp of oil.
Add sauce and stir for 5 min.
Results and Observations:
Thickness of the sauce made with pea starch was found to be higher than the
one made with corn starch. Pea starch gelled more than the corn starch when
cooked. The differences remained when the sauce was cooled in the
refrigerator overnight.
The store bought teriyaki sauce is thin and can easily flow while pouring.
The pea starch sauce is much thicker. However, when the pea starch sauce is
used in stir fry, it became thinner. Teriyaki sauce made with pea and corn
starches have the same taste and appearance.
12

Mornay Sauce
Table 2. Mornay sauce formulation.
Ingredients Grams %
Butter, Salted 17.5 6.0
Pea Starch 10.5 3.6
2% Milk 236 80.3
Salt 1.25 0.4
Black Pepper 0.25 0.1
Nutmeg, ground 0.1 0.0
Shredded 5 Italian
Cheese Blend 28.25 9.6
Procedure:
1. Melt butter in a pan. Do not allow to brown.
2. In a separate bowl whisk together the milk and the pea starch.
3. Add the milk/starch mixture to the butter and whisk constantly.
4. Bring to a boil and cook for an additional 1.5 min.
5. Add the salt, black pepper and nutmeg and stir.
6. Add the cheese and stir in until the cheese has been incorporated.
7. Serve over vegetables or pasta.
Results and observation:
The original Mornay sauce uses wheat flour as the thickener. In this
experiment, pea starch, corn starch and wheat starch were used to
thicken the Mornay sauce and compared. Wheat flour gave the final
product greyish color, the darkest and thinnest among all the
sauces. It was also slightly lumpy. Pea starch gave the sauce white
appearance with the thickest consistency. There were no notable
differences in flavor between the three sauces.
After cooling overnight, the sauce thickened with pea starch had
water leeching and seemed thinner than wheat flour sauce. The
sauce thickened with wheat flour had no leeching and appeared
very thick. Upon reheating, there was no major difference in the
texture of the pea starch and wheat flour sauces. The corn starch
seemed to be slightly thinner than others. For a sauce covering
vegetables or pasta, a thicker sauce is desirable.
13

Dry Chili Mix
Table 3. Formulation of dry chili mix.
Ingredients Gram %
Chili Powder 19.12 6.9
Garlic Powder 6.12 2.2
Onion Powder 4.28 1.5
Oregano, ground 3.05 1.1
Paprika 2.14 0.8
Cumin, ground 6.12 2.2
Thyme, ground 0.61 0.2
Onion, minced, dehydrated 10.36 3.7
Beef Bouillon 20 7.2
Cayenne Pepper 1.84 0.7
Red Beans, dehydrated 43.3 15.6
Pinto Beans, dehydrated 43.3 15.6
Kidney Beans, dehydrated 43.3 15.6
Red & Green Bell Peppers,
dehydrated 22 7.9
Pea Starch 72 25.9
Total Amount 278.42 100.0
Ingredients to Prepare Chili:
Tomato Sauce
Ground Beef
Water
16 oz
1 lb
6 cups
To Prepare chili:
1. Bring water to a boil
2. Whisk in chili mix, tomato sauce, and cooked ground beef
3. Bring back to a boil.
4. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 25-30 min, stir occasionally.
14

Results and observations:
Pea starch was compared to control (no starch), and corn starch. Pea starch provides
thickening effects and consistency similar to corn starch. This experiment concludes that
pea starch can be used as an alternative to corn starch to thicken chili in dry mixes and
similar products.
Table 4. Consistency differences when comparing control, pea starch and corn starch as the
thickening agent in dry chili mix.
Cook Time
(min)
Temperature after
cooking (°C)
Consistency
(cm)
Control (No Starch) 25 97.5 12.0
Pea (3% pea starch) 25 94.0 7.5
Corn (3% corn starch) 25 95.7 7.5
15

CUT MARSHMALLOW
Objective: To compare the functionality of pea starch to the traditional marshmallow
formulation.
Materials and Methods:
Table 1. Formulations of cut marshmallow.
Ingredient
Control Pea starch
% g % g
Sugar 45.1 316 41.1 288
63/43 DE Corn Syrup 30.0 210 30.0 210
Invert Sugar 4.0 28 4.0 28
Gelatin 1.7 12 1.7 12
Water 18.6 130 18.6 130
Pea Starch 0.0 0 4.0 28
Vanilla 0.6 4 0.6 4
Total 100.0 700 100.0 700
Table 2. Invert sugar formulation.
Invert sugar
g %
Sugar 76 100
Water 93.25 50
Citric acid 2.5 0.5
Procedure to make invert sugar: Cook until 236 F without stirring. Brush off the crystals on the
side of pan using ice water.
Procedure:
1) Control
1. Soak the gelatin in 61 g of water and microwave the mixture until clear.
2. Heat sugar, corn syrup and invert sugar and remaining water to 170°F in a pan.
3. Mix the gelatin and sugar solutions.
4. Cool to 110°F and whip the mixture until desired density (around 0.5 g/ml), about 2-3
min.
- To determine density fill souffle cup with water and weigh.
- Fill the same souffle cup with whipped marshmallow and weigh. Divide marshmallow
weight by water weight.
5. Pour mixture on surface or in a pan dusted with corn starch and powder sugar mix.
6. Cool for 2-3 hours and cut.
2) Pea Starch
1. Soak Gelatin as described above.
2. Mix pea starch with sugar, add, invert sugar and corn syrup.
16

3. Heat sugar mixture to 170°F as control and add gelatin mixture.
4. Cool and whip as described above, about 5 min at speed 10.
5. Slab as control in pan with corn starch and powdered sugar mix and cool for 2-3 hours.
Results: From this experiment, we found that both products are very similar (control and pea
starch). Pea starch marshmallow requires longer time to whip to the right density. It also exhibits
slightly softer texture than the control. Apart from this, there is no notable benefit of using pea
starch in marshmallow.
Foaming: For pea, foam was softer and was not as strong as control even though the density was
the same as control (3min). Therefore, it was whipped for longer until foam achieve a the
desirable strength (5 min).
Table 3. Density of control and pea foam.
Whipping time (min) Density (g/ml)
Control 3 0.45
Pea 3 0.45
Pea 5 0.41
Texture analysis: According to the results obtained from the texture analyzer, gumminess,
chewiness, and hardness values were higher in control samples, when compared to the pea starch
samples. With informal sensory panel, both marshmallows were similar.
Table 4. Texture analysis of control and pea starch marshmallow.
Hardness
(g)
Adhesiveness
(g.sec)
Resilience
(%)
Cohesion
(%)
Springiness
(%)
Gumminess
(%)
Chewiness
(%)
Control 287.4 -1.3 38.9 0.903 92.1 259.6 239.0
Pea starch 203.1 0.9 49.2 0.923 97.7 188.0 184.8
Nutrition: Both control and pea starch marshmallow exhibit similar nutritional content.
No Pea
Starch
With Pea
Starch
17

Figure 1. Control marshmallow formulation.
Figure 2. Marshmallow containing pea starch formulation.
18

SOFT CANDIES EXPERIMENT
Objective: To evaluate the functionality of pea starch in soft candies (gummies).
Materials and Methods:
Table 1. Treatments of soft candies.
Treatments 1 2 3 4
Ingredients % g % g % g % g
Corn syrup (62 DE) 30.5 152.5 30.5 152.5 30.5 152.5 15 75
Sucrose 18 90 20 100 18 90 20 100
Corn Syrup (Karo) 0 0 0 0 0 0 15 75
Pea starch 0 0 10 50 7.8 39 10 50
Corn starch 7.8 39 0 0 0 0 0 0
Water 43.7 218.5 39.5 197.5 43.7 218.5 40 200
Total 100 500 100 500 100 500 100 500
Flavor
Ingredients
Grams
Citric acid 5
Water 5
Strawberry Flavor 7.5
Procedure:
1. Hydrate starch with partial water and then mix it back with other ingredients.
2. Cook all the ingredients except flavor, citric acid solution (50:50 w:w) to a rolling
boil while stirring vigorously.
3. Once the mixture becomes thickened (at 90 o C), cook for about 5 min or until the mixture
becomes thick and heavy.
* Sugar crystal layer is formed on the bottom of pan but do not scrape it as it could
become crunchy in the final product.
4. Cook to an end point of 56-58 % solids controlled by a refractometer.
5. To the cooked mixture add flavor and citric acid (50:50 with water) to
taste.
6. Deposit into moulding starch (no more than 7% moisture) and dry at 120-140°F for 8 hours
to reach 81-83% solids.
7. Shake out of starch and blow off excess, then pass through steam on a sieve and roll into
sugar.
Note:
*The mixture becomes thickened at around 90°C. However, there is not much change on
temperature after that.
*Initial solid – 49% and end point – 56%.
*Hardness does not change extensively during drying in the oven thus the hardness you
achieve at the end of cooking will likely be the hardness of the candies.
19

Results:
Figure 1. Comparison of 4 treatments of soft candies.
1 – Corn
2 – Pea
3 – High solid with pea starch
4 –50:50 corn syrup 62DE/ Karo with pea starch
Table 2. Result of texture evaluation.
Sample Springiness (%) Firmness (g)
1 35.81 4449.42
2 51.64 4012.33
3 57.91 3077.92
4 57.87 4023.76
In order to determine the formulation, pea and corn starches were compared. 1 and 2 had
too much water thus texture of candies became too soft. In 3 and 4, percentage of solid was
increased. Increasing the solid changed the texture to become tougher and chewy. However,
treatment 3 was too thick to fill the mold since it did not flow. In order to modify the thickness of
liquid, 50 percent of corn syrup was replaced with conventional light corn syrup (Karo) which
has the lower Dextrin Equivalent (DE). By doing so, the end product had good flowing
properties as well as good chewing texture.
Sufficient amount of water is necessary in order to gel the starch. This is especially true
for pea starch since their gels are more viscous than corn. However, hardness of candies depends
on how much solid is in the formula therefore the amount of solid and moisture should be
adjusted in order to achieve the desirable texture. Solid percent in the formulation was modified
to 53% of solid since the texture was not hard enough. Cooking time and temperature greatly
affects the chewiness of the candy. When the mixture is not cooked enough, the end product after
drying became soft and wet. However, refractometer might not be used as an indicator of ideal
cooking time due to starch gelatinization. The Brix % does not directly reflect the amount of
solid because water is trapped in the starch. Therefore, the cooking time should be determined
based on thickness of the mixture and time. In addition, sugar tends to get crystalized and form a
layer in the bottom of the pan when candies are made on the stove top. This could cause crunchy
bits in the products. Using non-sticky pan and avoid scraping the bottom while stirring could
20

help avoiding the problem. Also heat should be lowered once the mixture is thickened to avoid
burning on bottom. Nevertheless, pea starch works well in soft candy application, and would
make better product over corn starch due to higher gelling property which could provide better
chewy texture. Recommended soft candy formulation using pea starch is shown in Table 3.
Pea Starch
Corn Starch
Table 3. Recommended candy formulation with pea starch.
Ingredients % g Solid (%)
Corn syrup (62DE) 15.0 75.0 80.0
Corn syrup (Karo) 15.0 75.0 80.0
Sucrose 20.0 100.0 99.0
Pea starch 10.0 50.0 93.0
Water 40.0 200.0 0.0
Total 100.0 500.0 352.0
Flavoring
Ingredients
Grams
Citric acid 5
Water 5
Strawberry Flavor 7.5
21