ABSTRACT
Cereal grains are composed of carbohydrates, protein, lipids, vitamins, and minerals. All cereals are classified as starchy grains because they contain at least 60% of this carbohydrate. The starch is composed of hundreds of glucose units that, after digestion, provide most of the energy consumed by humans. The starch is an excellent source of energy because, in practical terms, it is completely digested and utilized by a normal human being (Chapter 17). Beside its nutritional attributes, the starch plays a key role in the functional properties and processing of cereals. The starch has contrasting properties if it is in its native, gelatinized, or retrograded stages. Most food processing is aimed toward the partial or total starch gelatinization because the thermal-treated starch turns into molecules with a high affinity for water, which yields viscous doughs, gels, or slurries. The gelatinized starch starts to retrograde upon cooling. Retrogradation is also important because is related to staling or loss of texture of most cereal grain products.
