This work evaluated the hydration kinetics of three yellow soybeans and one black soybean (Glycine max (Linn.) Merr.) at five temperatures (5-40°C), as well as the softening kinetics of steamed and boiled soybeans after hydration. The results showed that high temperature promoted water absorption and solids loss. Dongbei large soybean had the fastest water absorption than all others and its water diffusivities varied from 4.4×10-11 (m2 /s) to 2.6×10-10 (m2 /s) at the tested temperatures. Page model provided the best prediction of moisture content of four varieties of soybeans at five temperatures. The thermodynamic coefficient indicated that hydration is a nonspontaneous phenomenon. In addition, results showed that four soybeans exhibited no significant differences in softening rate during the cooking process, although the black soybean had the highest ultimate hardness relative to the yellow soybeans. Taken together, these new results will provide theoretical support for industrial soaking and cooking approaches for soybeans.
Keywords: glycine max; hardness; thermodynamic properties; water uptake.
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