Effect of rutin and quercetin on the physicochemical properties of Tartary buckwheat starch

Tartary buckwheat is rich in phenolics and is an excellent healthy food source. To evaluate the endogenous phenolics affecting the physicochemical properties of the starch in Tartary buckwheat products during processing, varying concentrations (0.5, 1.0, and 1.5%) of the predominant phenols, rutin and quercetin, were co‐cooked with Tartary buckwheat starch (TBS). Rutin and quercetin reduced the peak and final temperatures and enthalpy of TBS during gelatinization, lowered the aging enthalpy of retrograded TBS, and increased the trough and final viscosity of TBS paste and reduced its breakdown. The two additives also reduced the hardness and cohesiveness of TBS gels, while improving their water‐binding capacity. The morphologies of gelatinized and retrograded TBS were greatly altered with the presence of rutin and quercetin. The interaction between rutin or quercetin and TBS may be responsible for these changes, and the starch–phenolic binding force was much weaker than that in the iodine–starch complex. Our study provides insight into the physicochemical effects of the phenol–starch interactions in the Tartary buckwheat food matrix in a model system.