ANSWER
In order to improve the crunchy texture of the crackers, the moisture content of the crackers should be reduced (Maskan & Altan, 2011; Cantor, 2008) while the fatty components of the crackers should be increased in terms of quantity and quality for an enhanced crunchy texture (Cauvain & Young, 2008; Hui, 2008). Besides that, the type of flour used is also important as the texture characteristic of the crackers depends primarily on properties of the gluten in the flour used in the production (Yada, 2004). As stated by Wilkinson & Champagne (2004), rice is often used in cracker and chip production because it contributes to moisture control, texture and flow in the extruders. Thus, rice flour and rice starch can be incorporated into crackers to improve the crunchiness of crackers.
Rice flour
Rice flour can be obtained from different varieties of long-, medium-, and short-grain rice, usually obtained from the broken milled rice after the bran and germ have been removed. It has a bland taste and sandy consistency; however, the chemical composition does not differ from that of the whole rice (Igoe, 2013; Coppedge Jr & Charles, 2008).
Rice flour does not contain gluten and dough made from it does not retain gasses generated during baking (Igoe, 2013). As a result, the versatility of rice flour has been seen in the application of gluten-free breads, cookies and other baked goods and this ingredient has become the favourable alternative for its usefulness as a wheat substitute in the dietary habits of people with gluten intolerance (Haas & Levin, 2012; Sinha, 2007).
A number of authors have stated the potential of rice flour in compact biscuits with an unbroken surface (Lucas, 2011), increasing the crispness of the baked products (Tiefenbacher, 2017), creating crunchy surfaces due to the presence of pure starch (Natkin, 2012) and improving texture in multi-grain snack foods (Hui, 2008). It is also reported that the use of rice flour would leda to less dough consistency and harder products with less moisture content (Shih et al, 2001). Furthermore, Hui (2008) proposed that long-grain rice flour can increase the crispness and crunchiness in snack foods, whereas waxy rice flour can reduce chip hardness while provide a melt-in-the-mouth texture usually achieved with extra fat.
Rice starch
Starch is the main component of rice. Due to the unique rheological properties being similar to fat globules, rice starch is used as a fat replacer in bakery (Elvers, 2017; BeMiller & Whistler, 2009). The fat mimicry of rice starch is highly attributed to the small granule size among all cereal starches which enables the formation of tender, opaque soft gel (Igoe, 2013), making it desirable as a fat replacement in foods (Tarte, 2009) apart from increasing the crispness of the baked products (Tiefenbacher, 2017).
There are a few scientific researches that have been done and concluded that the contribution of rice starch to the crunchiness and crispness of the baked products. Eliasson (2004) stated that rice starch has a characteristic desirable for use in breakfast cereals that need to remain crisp after exposure to milk. This is because rice starch possesses a rapid hot-set after such processing techniques as extrusion. Therefore, it is believed to form a crunchy crust of any baked product after subjected to high temperature cooking.
In wheat-based recipes, rice starch achieves the required texture or improves final product characteristics, such as increased crunchiness in crackers thanks to the use of our pregelatinised waxy rice starch. The rice starch can also be used to reduce breakage in cookies and crackers in pastries (BENEO Inc, 2017).
References
BeMiller, J.N. & Whistler, R.L. (2009). Starch: Chemistry & Technology (p. 771). Cambridge: Academic Press.
BENEO Inc. (2017). Technical & gluten-free solutions for baked goods. Morris Plains, New Jersey: Author.
Cantor, J.M. (2008). Progress in Food Engineering Research and Development (pp. 20-24). New York: Nova Science Publishers.
Cauvain, S.P. & Young, L.S. (2008). Baked Products: Science, Technology and Practice (p. 60). Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.
Coppedge, Jr, R.J. & Charles, C. (2008). Gluten-Free Baking with the Culinary Institute of America: 150 Flavourful Recipes from the World’s Premier Culinary College (p. 15). Avon, Massachusetts: Adams Media.
Eliasson, A.C. (2004). Starch in Food: Structure, Function and Applications (p. 261). Boca Raton: CRC Press.
Elvers, B. (2017). Ullmann’s Food and Feed (p. 573). Weinheim, Germany: John Wiley & Sons.
Haas, E. & Levin, B. (2012). Staying Healthy with Nutrition, rev: The Complete Guide to Diet and Nutritional Medicine (p. 330). Berkeley, California: Celestial Arts.
Hui, Y.H. (2006). Handbook of Food Science, Technology and Engineering, Volume 4 (pp. 164-168). Boca Raton: CRC Press.
Hui, Y.H. (2008). Bakery Products: Science and Technology (p. 126). Ames, Iowa: Blackwell Publishing.
Igoe, R.S. (2013). Dictionary of Food Ingredients (p. 120). New York: Springer Science & Business Media.
Lucas, G. (2011). The Complete Guide to Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free Cooking. London: Watkins Media Limited.
Maskan, M. &Altan, A. (2011). Advances in Food Extrusion Technology (p. 185). Boca Raton: CRC Press.
Natkin, M. (2012). Herbivoracious: A Flavor Revolution with 150 Variant and Original Vegetarian Recipes. Boston, Massachusetts: The Harvard Common Press.
Shih, F.F., Daigle, K.W. & Clawson, E.L. (2001). Development of Low Oil-Uptake Donuts. Journal of Food Science, 66(1), 141-144.
Sinha, N. (2007). Handbook of Food Products Manufacturing, 2 Volume Set (p. 531). Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.
Tarte, R. (2009). Ingredients in Meat Products: Properties, Functionality and Applications (pp. 42-43). New York: Springer Science & Business Media.
Tiefenbacher, K.F. (2017). The Technology of Wafers and Waffles I: Operational Aspects (p. 107). Cambridge: Academic Press.
Wilkinson, H.C. & Champagne, E.T. (2004). Value-added Rice Products in Today’s Markets. Cereal Foods World, 49(3), 134-138.
Yada, R. (2004). Proteins in Food Processing (p. 188). Boca Raton: CRC Press.
