Preparation of Choux Crust with Fine Powdery Rice Flour

Abstract

New uses for rice flour in cooked foods are being investigated to increase the consumption of rice in Japan, thereby increasing our country’s food self-sufficiency ratio. In this study, the properties and taste of choux crust prepared with fine powdery rice flour were investigated. The prepared choux dough was composed of rice flour (a%), butter (b%), egg (c%) and water (d%), where a=14-26, b=0-20, c=16-44 and d=100-(a+b+c), and was compared to dough prepared with wheat flour (e%), where e=18, b=14, c=36 and d=32. The results showed that the hardness of the dough was proportional to the rice flour content, and high rice flour content resulted in a hard crust with low specific volume. When butter was excluded from the dough, a thin crust in an unusual pipe-shape was produced, whereas dough with more than 18% butter content produced a flat crust. Dough with high egg content produced a flat dough and crust, but had a high specific volume. Consequently, the most desirable composition of choux crust was as follows: a=20, b=14, c=32 and d=34. The sensory evaluation revealed that crust samples containing rice flour were crisp compared to those containing wheat flour, but no significant difference in preference between the crusts was shown.