Abstract: A canned coarse cereal porridge was made from waxy corn, oats, millet, red beans, mung beans, and cowpea with added Auricularia cornea polysaccharide (ACP) as a stabilizer. The effects of A. cornea polysaccharide on the gelatinization, rheological, and retrogradation characteristics of porridge were measured by rapid visco analyzer (RVA), rheometer, and differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) combined with Avrami model. The results showed that the addition of ACP was positively correlated with the peak viscosity and final viscosity of porridge, but negatively correlated with the setback and breakdown values. The shear stress was significantly (P < 0.05) increased with increasing ACP addition, while ACP did not change fluid properties of the porridge. The porridge with ACP was still a pseudoplastic fluid. The increase in recrystallization temperature (T0 and TC) of the porridge samples was slowed down with the addition of ACP, and the aging ΔH was decreased by 46%. The Avrami model of aging kinetics showed that the amount of A. cornea polysaccharide added to the porridge was negatively correlated with the crystallization rate k. The porridge with 9% ACP had the best processing and storage quality.

Key words: Auricularia cornea polysaccharide; coarse cereal porridge; storage period; retrogradation; rheology