Effect of pentosan addition on dough rheological properties

In this paper a complete rheological characterisation of bread dough added with water-solvable pentosans is showed. In the literature several works are available showing the chemical and physical effect of pentosan addition but it is still matter of discussion of their effect on the mechanical properties of dough. Therefore, the main objective is to further study this point, evaluating the effect of pentosans on the rheological properties of dough, using fundamental measurements and theological modelling. Small amplitude oscillations at different temperatures were performed to evaluate material properties and stress relaxation tests, either within or out of the linear range, were used to investigate the effect of large deformations on material structure. Results showed that the effect of the addition is variable, depending on the amount, type of pentosans and deformation amplitude. The obtained results, together with rheological modelling, allow either to design dough having controlled properties during critical manufacturing steps (e.g. leavening or baking) or to reduce mechanical properties variability as effect of natural variation in flour characteristics. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.