Ultrasonic pretreatment of batter to improve the processing quality of steamed bread dough

Abstract

In order to improve the processing characteristics of dough, a new method of preparing dough by ultrasonic pretreatment of batter technology was investigated. The effect of ultrasound pretreatment of batter (UPB) of moisture distribution, rheological properties, protein structure, and dough microstructure of was analyzed. It was found that UPB promoted the conversion of free water to tightly bound water in the dough, enhancing the hydration between proteins and water. When ultrasound time was not higher than 20 min, a remarkable increase was recorded in the values of viscous and elastic modulus (G′, G″), and the contents of α-helix, β-sheet in dough with UPB. The content of disulfide bonds approached to the maximum value at the ultrasonication of 20 min, increasing by 41 % compared to the control. UPB introduced in dough processing significantly improved the stability, compactness, homogeneity and continuity of gluten network, which suggested the formation of a more well-organized and stable secondary structure of proteins. In general, UPB is a potential technology in the dough production, and it can effectively improve the processing characteristic of dough.