Refrigerated cooked rice can retain its slow starch digestion property only with rice varieties having long amylose chains after microwave reheating
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Microwave reheating is commonly used for refrigerated cooked rice, yet its effects on the digestibility of different rice varieties remain poorly understood. Ten rice varieties with different chain-length distributions were selected, and their digestibility was investigated after freshly steaming, retrogradation, and microwave reheating. The results revealed that microwave treatment preferentially disrupted B-type crystallites of retrograded amylopectin double helices, while preserving the V-type crystallites. Rice varieties with a higher proportion of amylopectin chains with DP 24-36 were susceptible to loss of short-range ordered structure upon reheating, leading to increased digestion rates. Conversely, varieties with higher amylose content, greater abundance of long-chain amylose exhibited greater resistance to microwave-induced structural damage. Notably, retrograded Low GI rice retained or formed additional enzyme-resistant structures after microwave heating. These findings demonstrate that the effect of microwave reheating on refrigerated rice is starch-structure-specific, and only certain rice varieties maintain slowly digestible starch property after reheating.
Source: Food Chemistry
Institutions: Chinese University of Hong Kong, Yangzhou University
Language: English
Subfield: Nutrition and Dietetics
Field: Nursing
Domain: Health Sciences
SDG: Zero hunger
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $4,930
OpenAlex ID: W7204103662