Measuring the Texture of Cooked Spaghetti. 1. Sensory and Instrumental Evaluation of Firmness

Abstract

The texture of cooked spaghetti was measured by sensory analysis and an instrumental test using the multiblade cutting cell of the Ottawa Texture Measuring System. The cutting forces were correlated to sensory evaluations of adhesiveness, firmness, springiness and rate of breakdown of the spaghetti in the mouth. Instrumental readings showed that spaghetti toughness increased logarithmically with the deformation rate used to cut the sample, and in the range 2.5 to 155cm/min the rate selected affected the relationships with sensory reactions. This suggests that the cutting rate selected is critical and must be constant. The data did not suggest an optimum rate for the test. The toughness changed with cooking time and elapsed time after cooking so that these times must be carefully controlled in sensory and instrumental tests.Average chewing rates used by 8 panelists to masticate spaghetti ranged from 50 to 109 bites per min.