ABSTRACT

The transformation of cereal products from dough to biscuit, cracker, bread, or pastry is a very complicated process, involving many mechanisms to be carried out. This chapter points-out some industrial progress and presents results that can be applied on-line for the control of the baking of cereal products. It describes briefly the roles of each variable during baking, and with the consequences for controlling the oven. Though different technologies are used, an oven is just a heat exchanger, in which heat is generated from the combustion of gas or the use of electrical energy. The control of the product dimension is essential for technological purposes and from the consumer point of view. The dimension, specifically the thickness, is greatly affected by baking. Significant progress is being made, and more properties can be measured on-line.