The cooking quality of spaghetti was evaluated by using a texturometer, and changes in texture of spaghetti during packaging, sterilizing and storing were investigated.
Clear texturometer curves for cooked spaghetti were obtained, but no adhesiveness sign appeared in the curves. Both values of hardness and gumminess of spaghetti decreased hyperbolically with cooking time. Slope and y-segment of the line obtained in the logarithmic coordinate plots of the values of hardness and gumminess against the cooking time, might be useful indexes for evaluation of the cooking quality of spaghetti. Values of cohesiveness was almost constant over various cooking time.
Values of the three parameters of packaged and sterilized samples were almost same as or greater than those of samples that were cooked for same time as packaged ones. The tendency of the changes in these values with cooking time were the same as that of the samples which were only cooked. A stabler spaghetti texture was obtained when sterilized for shorter time at higher temperature.
Optimum cooking and sterilizing condition can be determined by measureing these texture parameters.