Jack bean starch: properties, functionality, and modification

Jack bean (Canavalia ensiformis) is a non-conventional starch source potentially used in the food and non-food industry. This chapter discusses the characteristic of jack beans along with the physical, nutritional, and chemical properties of jack bean flour. In addition, this chapter also covers starch production from jack bean. This chapter, therefore, deliberates the physicochemical and nutritional properties of jack bean starch. It is found that there are some limitations on the properties of native starch of jack bean, and thus some efforts have been conducted by the scientist to modify the characteristic of the starch. Recent updates on the chemical and physical modification for improving the properties of jack bean starch are also covered in this chapter. In the end, potential applications of jack bean flour as well as native and modified jack bean starch are also discussed.