Impact of heating temperatures on the properties of instant cassava flour

Native cassava flour can be modified to be instant flour by heating the cassava flour in ethanol solution. The impact of heating temperatures of 60, 80, and 100 °C (coded as ICF-60, ICF-80, and ICF-100) on the properties of instant cassava flour (ICF), including colour, morphological, and thermal properties, water absorption, and solubility indexes and pasting behaviour, were investigated. Results showed that ICF produced at higher temperatures exhibited lower lightness, higher redness, and yellowness values. ICF-60 and ICF-80 still displayed the granular forms and birefringence properties of native starches, while granules of ICF-100 were broken and partially lost their birefringence properties. Results of X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis suggested that the amylopectin double helixes of crystalline regions within the structure of ICF orientated to more perfect conformation before they were disrupted at the highest heating temperature (100 °C). During hydration, the starch granules of ICF-60 and ICF-80 absorbed water into their granules; meanwhile, ICF-100 entrapped water within the matrix formed by the entanglements of ICF-100 particles. Results of pasting behaviour analysis indicated that ICF-60 and ICF-80 showed better thermal stability while ICF-100 exhibited the highest cold viscosity.