Effect of freezing temperature on rehydration and water vapor adsorption characteristics of freeze-dried rice porridge

Effect of freezing temperature of rice porridge on quality properties of freeze-dried rice porridge was investigated at various temperatures. Slow freezing produced porous freeze-dried rice porridges with large pores and more brittle structure than rapid freezing. All the quality properties tested were greatly influenced by both freezing temperature and temperature for the property evaluation. Both the initial rehydration ratio and the dissolution time of the freeze-dried rice porridge decreased with increase in water temperature. Results on the effect of freezing temperature on rehydration ratio and dissolution time indicated slow freezing is more preferable for the freeze-dried rice porridge. The Peleg model was fitted better than the Singh and Kulshrestha model to explain the water vapor adsorption kinetics. The activation energy for the water vapor adsorption of the freeze-dried rice porridge determined by using the Peleg model ranged 16.2-23.1 kJ/mol depending on the freezing temperature.