Abstract:To investigate the lubricity of different starch hydrogels during oral processing, the frictional properties of 6 types of starch hydrogels with varying starch mass fractions were analyzed by simulating oral processing conditions. The results demonstrated that as the starch mass fraction increased, the friction coefficient of cereal starch gels (corn, wheat), legume starch gels (peas, mung beans), and tuber starch gels (sweet potato, potato) initially increased significantly (1%-7%), subsequently decreased markedly (8%-10%), and eventually stabilized (11%-14%). Comparative analysis of the lubricity of different starch gels revealed that sweet potato starch gels exhibited the best lubricity (μ = 0.817-0.932), while wheat starch gels showed the worst performance (μ = 1.046-1.103) when the starch mass fraction was in the range of 1%-7% (P<0.05). When the starch mass fraction was between 8%-10%, sweet potato starch gels continued to demonstrate the highest lubricity (μ=1.033-1.046), whereas corn starch gels performed the worst (μ=1.157-1.188) (P<0.05). At a starch mass fraction of 11%-14%, the lubricity of mung bean starch gels (μ = 1.269-1.361) was significantly lower than that of other starch gels (μ = 0.901-1.085) (P<0.05), and the differences in lubricity among potato, sweet potato, wheat, corn, and pea starch gels were markedly reduced (P<0.05). Conclusion: The frictional properties of starch gels are significantly influenced by both the mass fraction and type of starch. Furthermore, the disparity in lubrication properties between different species and genera of starches gradually diminishes as the mass fraction increases. This study provides a theoretical basis for enhancing sensory texture in the processing of starch-based foods.