Starch can be hydrolyzed into simpler carbohydrates by acids, various enzymes, or a combination of the two.
Clothing starch or laundry starch is a liquid that is prepared by mixing a vegetable starch in water (earlier preparations also had to be boiled) and is used in the laundering of clothes.
Starch is the major polysaccharide in higher plants used for storage of carbohydrates.
Animals and plants digest starch, converting it to glucose to serve as a source of energy.
Starch readily binds water, and when that water is removed, polysaccharide chains aggregate, forming hydrogen bonds.
Dirt and sweat from a person's neck and wrists would stick to the starch rather than fibers of the clothing, and would easily wash away along with the starch.
Commonly used starches around the world are: arracacha, buckwheat, banana, barley, cassava, kudzu, oca, sago, sorghum, sweet potato, taro, and yams.
After cellulose, starch is the most abundant polysaccharide in plant cells.
A positive mold is then pressed into the starch leaving an impression of one hundred or so jelly babies.
A modified food starch undergoes one or more chemical modifications that allow it to function properly under high heat and/or shear frequently encountered during food processing.
Chefs have traditionally worn starched uniforms because the starch acts as a fire retardant.
Starch glues are widely used in the bonding of paper, wood, and cotton.
Willett and Stampfer (2003) found an association between a high intake of starch from refined grains and potatoes and the risk of type 2 diabetes and coronary heart disease.
Starch is a complex carbohydrate, specifically a polysaccharide, that is used by plants as a way to store glucose.
The basic molecular structure of these are: (C6(H5O)10)n. As with cellulose and glycogen, starch contains the six-carbon sugar glucose as its single repeating unit.
Starch was widely used in Europe in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries to stiffen the wide collars and ruffs of fine linen that surrounded the necks of the well-to-do.
Edible beans, such as favas, lentils, and peas, are also rich in starch.
Starch is a major source of carbohydrates in human diets, and can be obtained from seeds, fruits, nuts, corn, potatoes, and so forth.
Under the microscope, starch grains show a distinctive Maltese cross effect (also known as “extinction cross” and birefringence) under polarized light.
The extent of conversion is typically quantified by dextrose equivalent (DE), which is roughly the fraction of the glycoside bonds in starch that have been broken.
Self-discipline is called for in eating food high in starch, such as refined cereals, breads, and pastas, since overconsumption of complex carbohydrates correlates with obesity and medical problems.
Starch granules are generally about 10-30 percent amylose and 70-90 percent amylopectin.
Food starches are typically used as thickeners and stabilizers in foods such as puddings, custards, soups, sauces, gravies, pie fillings, and salad dressings, but have many other uses.