Little, R.R.; Hilder, G.B.; Dawson, E.H.
The dispersal of material from white rice (Oryza sativa) kernels upon treatment for 23 hours with 1.7% potassium hydroxide was evaluated for spreading and clearing on 7-point numerical scales. Sixty-five lots of rice milled from 25 varieties, representing 3 crop years and 4 geographical areas of the United States, were included in the study. Slight-to-moderate spreading and clearing was characteristic of most long-grain varieties, and a more pronounced reaction was characteristic of most medium- and short-grain varieties. Exceptions were noted, and also the possible influence of growing conditions and storage time. Values for spreading and for clearing were negatively correlated with panel scores for cohesiveness at the 1% level of significance, with coefficients of -0.51 and -0.85, respectively. Microscopic observations of the dispersed material revealed that it consisted of starch in the form of granules and in nongranular form. Starch granules were of 2 types: (a) "swollen" granules or those having a dilated appearance and often indefinite outline, and (b) "compact" granules or those which seemed to have lost in density without expanding. Nongranular starch could be seen in patterns roughly classified as very fine, fine, medium, and coarse.