Starch gelatinization

[3] The gelatinization temperature of modified starch depends on, for example, the degree of cross-linking, acid treatment, or acetylation.

Gelatinized starch, when cooled for a long enough period (hours or days), will thicken (or gel) and rearrange itself again to a more crystalline structure; this process is called retrogradation.

[6] Amylopectin molecules with longer branched structure, which makes them more similar to amylose, increases the tendency to form strong gels.

Retrogradation restricts the availability for amylase hydrolysis to occur, which reduces the digestibility of the starch.

[citation needed] It is a common technique used by food industries to determine the pasting temperature, swelling capacity, shear/thermal stability, and the extent of retrogradation.

[7] Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) is another method industries use to examine properties of gelatinized starch.

As water is heated with starch granules, gelatinization occurs, involving an endothermic reaction.