LAUSR

Abstract This work investigated effects of the galacturonic acid content (GA), degree of methoxylation (DM), degree of amidation (DA) and molecular weight (M W ) of pectin on the pasting properties of rice starch (RS). Pectins with varying structures were selected randomly. Different pectins when added to RS showed significant differing ( p R 2  ≥ 0.936), and relative errors of pasting properties for prediction group were very close to the coefficient of variation (except breakdown). The contribution of the specific pectin structural characteristic on the change of the pasting properties of RS was also evaluated. DM was greatly correlated with peak and trough viscosity. Breakdown was strongly affected by DA and GA. Two primary factors that affected setback were the M W and GA. Furthermore, peak time was mainly influenced by DA.