A current review of structure, functional properties, and industrial applications of pulse starches for value‐added utilization

Abstract

Pulse crops have received growing attention from the agri‐food sector because they can provide advantageous health benefits and offer a promising source of starch and protein. Pea, lentil, and faba bean are the three leading pulse crops utilized for extracting protein concentrate/isolate in food industry, which simultaneously generates a rising volume of pulse starch as a co‐product. Pulse starch can be fractionated from seeds using dry and wet methods. Compared with most commercial starches, pea, lentil, and faba bean starches have relatively high amylose contents, longer amylopectin branch chains, and characteristic C‐type polymorphic arrangement in the granules. The described molecular and granular structures of the pulse starches impart unique functional attributes, including high final viscosity during pasting, strong gelling property, and relatively low digestibility in a granular form. Starch isolated from wrinkled pea—a high‐amylose mutant of this pulse crop—possesses an even higher amylose content and longer branch chains of amylopectin than smooth pea, lentil, and faba bean starches, which make the physicochemical properties and digestibility of the former distinctively different from those of common pulse starches. The special functional properties of pulse starches promote their applications in food, feed, bioplastic and other industrial products, which can be further expanded by modifying them through chemical, physical and/or enzymatic approaches. Future research directions to increase the fractionation efficiency, improve the physicochemical properties, and enhance the industrial utilization of pulse starches have also been proposed. The comprehensive information covered in this review will be beneficial for the pulse industry to develop effective strategies to generate value from pulse starch.

How postharvest variables in the pulse value chain affect nutrient digestibility and bioaccessibility

“…Structural and functional characteristics of pulse starches were extensively reviewed by Hoover et al (2010) and Ren et al (2021).…”

Understanding Starch Metabolism in Pea Seeds towards Tailoring Functionality for Value-Added Utilization

“…It contains 65% to 78% amylose and shows the B type crystalline pattern. The granule of wrinkled pea starch varies in size from 15 to 20 µm, displaying a lobed structure with a fusion of multiple small sub-granules into one single granule [144]. Amylopectin from isolated smooth pea starch (94.8% purity) contains a significantly smaller proportion of DP 6-12 short branch chains, but a larger proportion of DP 13-24 branch chains than those of maize and tapioca starches [145].…”

“…Currently, most starch concentrates coming from pea fractionation are being used for food and animal feed, while there are increasing demands for pea starch to be used in nonfood industrial applications. A comprehensive review was recently published on the industrial utilization of starches from pulse crops including peas [144]. Increasing environmental concerns about petroleum-based packaging materials require the development of environmentally friendly bio-based materials from renewable natural resources.…”

Influence of Emerging Technologies on the Utilization of Plant Proteins

“…It performs relevant functional roles in food formulation, processing, storage, and consumption. They also benefit food sensory and quality attributes, depending on their functional properties, such as solubility, gelling, water-and oil-holding capacities, emulsifying, and foaming (1,2).…”