Abstract:There are various types of fresh waxy corn, which exhibit differences in edible quality after cooking. In order to explore the factors affecting the edible quality of fresh waxy corn, four varieties of fresh waxy corn were selected and an ordinary corn was used as the control. Based on sensory evaluation, texture characteristics, component composition and starch gelatinization degree analysis, starch components were extracted to further study their thermodynamic properties, gelatinization characteristics, and starch structure features. The results showed that the amylopectin mass fraction of four kinds of fresh waxy corn ranged from 95% to 98%. The texture hardness value ranged from 2 987 g to 3 633 g, and the gelatinization degree after cooking ranged from 68% to 91%. The sensory evaluation results showed that ‘Sukenuo 1505’ and ‘Sukenuo 1704’ with higher gelatinization degrees exhibited better taste. The correlation analysis revealed that there was a significant positive correlation between the scores of waxiness and taste with gelatinization degree (P<0.05), with correlation coefficients of 0.698 and 0.651, respectively. At the same time, amylopectin mass fraction was positively correlated with taste score(P<0.05), with correlation coefficient of 0.642. There was a significant negative correlation between amylopectin mass fraction and hardness(P<0.05), with correlation coefficient of -0.742. The correlation analysis showed that the starch gelatinization degree of fresh waxy corn had a great effect on the taste. This study provides a reference for the relationship between the edible quality of fresh waxy corn and the properties of starch. It offers a new research direction and data support in identifying key factors affecting the quality of fresh waxy corn, guiding the development of fresh waxy corn industry.
