Effect of modified atmosphere packaging of different oxygen levels on cooking qualities and phytochemicals of brown rice during accelerated aging storage at 37 °C

Consumption of brown rice decreased the risk of chronic diseases, which might be due to the presence of phytochemicals. However, the aging process reduced phytochemical contents of brown rice. The present work investigated modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) of different oxygen levels to preserve cooking qualities and phytochemicals of brown rice during aging storage. Compared with other treatments, 90 % N 2 + 10 % O 2 packaging showed best effect of preserving cooking qualities including texture and microstructure. The oxidation level of brown rice was also the lowest in 90 % N 2 + 10 % O 2 packaging. After storage, contents of phytosterol (campesterol, stigmasterol, β-sitosterol) and phenolic compounds (gallic acid, p-coumaric acid, ferulic acid, caffeic acid, syringic acid, catechin, quercetin) of brown rice in 90 % N 2 + 10 % O 2 packaging were significantly higher than those in other packagings. These results indicated that 90 % N 2 + 10 % O 2 packaging was a suitable MAP method for the retention of acceptable cooking qualities and phytochemical contents of brown rice.