PARTICLE-SIZE OF UNSWEETENED AZUKI PASTE AS RELATED TO CULTIVAR AND COOKING TIME

Characteristics of beans and effects of cooking time on yield, composi tion and particle size of unsweetened paste were evaluated in two type s of azuki, Cultivar Erimo was smaller in seed size, lower in starch b ut higher in protein content. Consequently, this cultivar absorbed wat er faster and to a greater extent during soaking and cooking, and requ ired shorter cooking time than large seeded WSU 262, Over 40% of unswe etened paste particles were smaller than 106 mu m for cv Erimo and les s than 25% for WSU 262, As cooking time increased, paste yield ranged from 68.6% to 71.9% for cv Erimo and from 57.3% to 74.2% for WSU 262. Sedimentation volume of unsweetened azuki paste correlated with partic les smaller than 106 mu m (r = 0.918) and can be a useful test to esti mate mean particle size of unsweetened azuki paste.