Abstract
Chinese noodles with a specific texture different from Japanese noodles, which were used as the control, were prepared. Chinese noodles consisting of hard wheat flour with 45% added water and 1% kansui powder (35% K2CO3+55% Na2CO3+10% NaHPO3. 12H2O) were made with a hand-powered noodle machine and boiled in water for 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 min. The physical properties of the Chinese noodles were examined by a rheometer and subjected to a sensory test. The breaking stress of the Chinese noodles was higher than that of the Japanese noodles. The sensory evaluation showed that the Chinese noodles were harder and rougher than the Japanese noodles. The degree of gelatinization of the Chinese noodles was lower than that of the Japanese noodles. The addition of “kansui” resulted in fluidity of gluten as observed by an optical microscope. The solution ratio of the protein in wet gluten stirred at various pH values was higher at pH 2 and in the alkaline range (kansui, pH 11.2) than in a neutral solution.
