Study of the physicochemical and functional characterization of quinoa and kaniwa starches

The objective of this work was to study the physico-chemical and functional properties of starch isolated from different quinoa varieties and kaniwa ecotypes regarding their possible uses in cereals-derived food. Four ecotypes of kaniwa and three varieties of quinoa were analyzed. Starch isolation from quinoa and kaniwa flour was carried out by combining two extraction procedures. Quinoa and kaniwa isolated starches had similar chemical composition but protein, lipid, and fiber content was lower for quinoa than kaniwa starches. The amylose content varied from 9.30 to 8.35% for quinoa and from 17.44 to 10.70% for kaniwa starches. Significant differences in pasting properties were observed among quinoa varieties and kaniwa ecotypes, quinoa starches had higher peak and final viscosity and lower setback than kaniwa. Amylose content correlated negatively with peak viscosity and positively with setback. Kaniwa starches yielded higher firmness starch pastes than quinoa starches. No differences in starch granule morphology between quinoa and kaniwa were observed, both species showed polygonal granules. However, granules from quinoa were larger (approximate to 2.53 mu m) than kaniwa granules (approximate to 1.45 mu m). Differences in granule size, amylose content, pasting and thermal properties among quinoa and kaniwa provide new starch types with a wide range of possibilities for food applications.