I poured starch into the jelly and smelled the medicine slightly. I looked at the date and fell (2010 is expiring.
The smell is because he picked it up from his 'neighbors'.
Starch is the same as sugar, only longer; it deteriorates by 'breaking' and losing its astringent properties.
It is difficult to get poisoned by expired bread - a complete analogy with ordinary bread, when crackers can be eaten, but mold is not.
Below are the answers from our readers.
Starch is used for sauces, ketchups, soups, jelly and other dishes that need to be thickened. He handles it very well. Like all products, starch has an expiration date. As a rule, its storage should not exceed 2 years. It is worth noting that the properties of starch (its suitability for consumption) are also affected by storage conditions. To avoid lumps, store it in a cool, dry place.
If the expiration date of starch has expired, then do not be upset and throw it away immediately; it can still be used in many cases. Let’s say you can use starch to clean a carpet, starch your laundry, or cover the windows in your dacha. When there is a small child in the house and there is no baby powder on hand, you can use starch instead.
A paste is also made from starch, which is used to work in the papier-mâché technique.
Starch, like any food product, has an expiration date, and under certain storage conditions. Since starch is very hygroscopic, it must be stored in moisture-proof packaging. As a rule, it is packaged in small bags so that after opening the package the product can be quickly used. But again, from practice, nothing is done with it. Previously, I personally made starch from potatoes (it was a good year), and I got a lot of starch. I used it for several years.
It is possible if the starch is stored correctly, and as a result there are no lumps in it and there are no midges infested. The main thing is that it is dry, crumbly, without any foreign odor. Starch is usually used in small quantities.
What kind of starch: corn, potato? Severely expired? If it lasts for a few days or a couple of months and doesn’t look or smell spoiled, then you can. The product does not know how long it has been given to spoil. I also use flour that is several months past its expiration date, as well as cereals. I look: if there are no bugs and no moisture has entered, I use it for another 5-7 months.
Starch is a tasteless white powder, insoluble in cold water. Starch was first patented in the USA back in 1841. Due to the beneficial properties of starch, it began to be used not only in cooking, but also in industry. It began to be extracted from grain crops: rice, corn, soybeans, wheat, millet and sorghum, as well as from root crops: potatoes, sweet potatoes, cassava, and even legumes: lentils and peas.
Shelf life table for starch
| wdt_ID | Kinds | Varieties | Peculiarities | Shelf life |
| 1 | Potato starch | Raw starch is divided into 1st, 2nd and 3rd grades. Dry starch is “Extra”, highest, first and second grades. | Sold raw and dry. A distinctive feature of potato starch is the high initial viscosity of the paste. | Assigned by the manufacturer. Usually, no more than 3 months for raw and 2 years for dry starch. |
| 2 | Corn starch | There are 3 grades: highest, first and amylopectin grade. | Corn starch paste has a low viscosity. The starch itself has a specific corn smell. | Assigned by the manufacturer, usually for no more than 2 years. |
| 3 | Wheat starch | Extra, premium and first grade | It has lower viscosity and greater transparency than potato and corn. Has a neutral taste. | From one to two years. |
| 4 | Rice starch | Extra, premium and first grade | Forms opaque pastes of low viscosity with high storage stability. | Shelf life is also about 2 years |
| 5 | Amylopectin starch | Itself is a variety of corn starch | Derived from waxy corn, amylopectin starch is different from other types of corn starch. A paste made from such starch has good viscosity and moisture-holding ability. | Up to 2 years |
| 6 | Modified starch | In the Russian Federation, the use of more than 20 types of modified starches is permitted. (E140, E 1404, E1405, E1410, etc.) | The term "modified starch" has nothing to do with genetically modified foods. It is ordinary starch with additives needed for specific purposes. | Up to 2 years |
REFERENCE: Products high in starch are primarily legumes (beans, lentils), vegetables (potatoes, zucchini), nuts, cereals and flour made from them.
Starch quality
Starch is a highly purified carbohydrate product. It is formed as a result of photosynthesis (glucose - starch) in cereal grains, vegetable tubers, etc. Starch is one of the main sources of energy for the human body and is obtained from food (bread, cereals, confectionery). The difference between potato and cereal starch is in the properties of the product. By the way, we also wrote about starches and other thickeners in this article.
What types of starch are there?
Each type of starch differs in the size and shape of the starch grains. For example, rice starch has the smallest grains of multifaceted shape, and it also produces a solution of low viscosity. If we talk about potato starch, then it has the largest grains (15-100 microns), oval in shape with grooves on the surface, it can swell in water, and when heated with it, it forms a viscous and transparent paste. The more grains, the better the quality of potato starch. Corn starch usually has grains in the form of irregular hexagons measuring 5-25 microns; it forms an opaque, low-viscosity, milky-white paste with a specific corn aroma.
Due to the microporous structure of starch grains, they are characterized by high sorption (that is, the ability to absorb), and the hydrophilic properties of amylose and amylopectin contained in the grains give the starch grains hygroscopicity, especially potato starch, which determines its ability to produce a denser mass.
Starch quality.
Organoleptic properties of starch:
Potato starch comes in extra grades, first (these grades are white and are distinguished by their crystalline luster due to the presence of large grains) and second (grayish in color, used for technical purposes), and corn starch is in the highest and first grades, white in color.
For starch, there are physical and chemical indicators of the norm
:
· The mass fraction of moisture in potato starch is no more than 20%, in corn starch – no more than 13%.
· Mass fraction of ash in terms of dry matter: in extra potato varieties - no more than 0.30%, in higher varieties - 0.35%, in first varieties - 0.50%; in premium corn – 0.20%, first – 0.30%.
· Starch acidity is an indicator of the freshness of starch. It can increase as a result of fermentation processes and should be no more than: 6.0 in the extra grade, 10 in the highest grade and 14 in the first grade of potato starch, and no more than 20 and 25 in the highest and first grades, respectively, of corn starch (cm3 0. 1 mol/dm3 NaOH).
· Mass fraction of sulfur dioxide in potato starch of all varieties – no more than 0.005%, in corn starch – 0.008%
· The mass fraction of protein (converted to dry matter) in the highest grade of starch is no more than 0.8%, in the first grade – no more than 1.0%.
How is starch obtained?
Potato starch is formed from potato tubers with a starch content of at least 14%. To obtain starch
the tubers are washed, crushed to open the tissue cells and release the grains, then washed with water, then centrifuged to separate the juice (it causes the starch to darken and reduces the viscosity of the starch). Starch milk obtained from porridge is washed and cleaned, and then raw starch with a moisture content of up to 49% is precipitated from it, after which the starch is dried to a moisture content of 20%.
Corn starch is produced
from white grain varieties of corn, the starch content of which is about 70%. The process of obtaining this type of starch is complicated by the fact that the starch grains in corn are, as it were, sharpened by protein, and to dissolve it, the grain is first soaked in a light solution of sulfuric acid at a temperature of 50-65 degrees. Then the grain is crushed and mixed with water to form a paste-like mass. Starch milk is obtained from this porridge, from which starch is then precipitated and dried to a moisture content of 13%.
What else can you get from starch?
Artificial sago is also made from potato or corn starch for industrial enterprises.
– it is used for filling pies, making puddings, and cereals. To make sago, raw starch is divided into pieces, passed through a 4 mm sieve and rolled in a drum to form balls. These balls are then steamed at temperatures up to 70 degrees so that the starch gelatinizes, forming a crust on the surface of the sago. Afterwards, the balls are dried to a moisture content of 16% (potato starch) or 13% (corn starch), and polished to give shine. Sago is of the highest and first grade.
The highest grade sago made from potato starch has a matte white color, the first grade sago may have a grayish tint, and the sago made from corn starch has a yellowish tint.
Starch is also used to make molasses
(product of incomplete hydrolysis of starches). This sweet mixture of glucose, maltose and dextrins, reminiscent of syrup, is produced for the confectionery production of caramel, halva and sweets, and for syrups in baked goods. Molasses can be highly sugared, caramel of the highest and first grades, as well as low-sugared caramel. The molasses should be transparent, without any foreign odors or tastes. The mass fraction of dry substances in molasses is at least 78%, reducing substances - up to 50%, ash - up to 0.55%.
Buy potato and corn starch wholesale and retail
available in our online store “Idigo”.
Optimal storage conditions at home
Starch, like any other food product, has certain storage conditions. To ensure a shelf life of 2 years, manufacturers recommend storing any type of starch in a dry and ventilated place with a humidity of no more than 75%, away from products with a strong odor.
- Regardless of the variety and type, starch is stored well in cool, dry places, best in cabinets where sunlight does not penetrate;
- The air temperature should be about 20 ° C, relative humidity - 75%;
- It is best to store starch in its original packaging, but if the integrity of the packaging is damaged, then it is necessary to pour the starch into an airtight, waterproof container. Such measures are necessary because starch has strong hygroscopicity, that is, it absorbs all the moisture that gets into it and deteriorates;
- You can store raw and dry starch in the refrigerator and freezer only in the original sealed packaging.
7 Transportation and storage
7.1 Potato starch is transported by all types of transport in covered vehicles, as well as in containers in accordance with the cargo transportation rules in force for this type of transport. Packaging during transportation is in accordance with GOST 24597, GOST 26663 and GOST 21650. Transportation of potato starch is not allowed in vehicles in which poisonous and strong-smelling cargo was transported, as well as together with products with specific odors.
7.2 Potato starch should be stored in clean, dry and well-ventilated warehouses, free of foreign odors and grain stocks not contaminated by pests. In warehouses where potato starch is stored, the relative air humidity should be no more than 75%.
7.3 Transportation and storage of potato starch sent to the Far North and equivalent areas - in accordance with GOST 15846.
7.4 The shelf life of potato starch is established by the manufacturer in the technological instructions. The recommended shelf life of potato starch is two years.
Why is starch “afraid”, what conditions are detrimental to it?
Starch is a durable substance, but, unfortunately, it can quickly be spoiled.
- The most dangerous enemy of starch is water. Wet starch loses all its properties and becomes unsuitable for any actions with it. Drying moisture-saturated starch at home will also not work.
- The second enemy of starch is pests. Yes, the same bugs that crawl in semolina, flour, buckwheat will also not refuse to frolic in starch. There are a huge number of species of these bugs, but we will not talk about them, because we do not need any of these species in starch.
- The last enemy of starch is strong odors. Starch absorbs everything that is around it, including odors. For example, take the smell of onions. Having absorbed the pungent onion smell, the starch will happily transfer it to jelly, pudding or any other dessert that you want to treat yourself and your family to. No, onions smell great in those dishes where they are needed, but definitely not in berry jelly.
REFERENCE: The only role of starch in the human diet is its conversion into glucose for additional energy.
Appendix A (for reference). Nutritional value of 100 g potato starch
Appendix A (reference)
A.1 The nutritional value of 100 g of potato starch is given in Table A.1. Table A.1
| The nutritional value | Starch grade | |||
| Extra | Higher | First | Second | |
| Carbohydrates, g | 79,6 | 79,3 | 79,1 | 79,0 |
| Calorie content, kcal | 318 | 317 | 316 | 316 |
The shelf life of starch in the store
Few of us make our own starch at home, so we buy it at the store. Everything is simple with the timing of the sale of starch in the store. A store can sell goods only if two conditions are met:
- The starch packaging is not damaged
- Expiration date has not expired
With the first point, everything is extremely simple: the packaging is torn - it should not be on the counter, the product is damaged.
The expiration date should be clearly visible on the packaging, not covered up, not closed. Usually, the product indicates both the production date and the expiration date, as well as the expiration date itself, in our case it is up to 2 years.
5 Acceptance rules
5.1 Potato starch is taken in batches. A batch is considered to be a set of units of products of the same name, grade, manufactured by one enterprise on one date and shift in the same packaging and issued with one quality document. When transporting in bulk in special vehicles, each vehicle is considered a batch.
5.2 Each batch of potato starch must be accompanied by a quality and safety certificate containing: the number and date of issue of the certificate; name and location of the manufacturer (legal address, including country, and, if it does not coincide with the legal address, production address) and the organization in the Russian Federation authorized by the manufacturer to accept claims from consumers on its territory (if any); manufacturer's trademark (if available); name and grade of starch; batch number; date of manufacture and date of shipment; batch weight (number of packaging units and net weight of the packaging unit); test results; storage conditions (inscription: “Store at a relative humidity of the warehouse air of no more than 75%”); best before date; designation of this standard; information on confirmation of conformity.
5.3 Rules for acceptance of potato starch - according to GOST 7698 with the following additions: - for potato starch packed in containers, check each container; - for potato starch packed in boxes or group packaging - 2% of packaging units of the number of boxes or group packaging, but not less than two packaging units; - for specialized vehicles - each vehicle is checked.
5.4 Each batch is subject to verification of the condition of the packaging and compliance of the marking with the requirements of this standard.
5.5 To check the quality indicators of potato starch in consumer packaging, the sample size is determined according to table 3. Table 3
| Net weight of packaging unit, g | Sample size, pcs. |
| From 200 to 300 incl. | 30 |
| From 301 to 500 incl. | 22 |
| Over 500 | 13 |
5.6 Organoleptic and physicochemical indicators (mass fraction of moisture and acidity) are determined in each batch, the mass fraction of total ash is monitored periodically, but at least once every ten days or at the request of the consumer.
5.7 If unsatisfactory test results are obtained for at least one indicator, repeat tests are carried out on a double sample taken from the same batch. The results of repeated analyzes apply to the entire batch.
5.8 The procedure and frequency of monitoring the content of toxic elements, pesticides, radionuclides and microbiological indicators in potato starch is established by the manufacturer in the production control program.
