Effects of oligosaccharides on particle structure, pasting and thermal properties of wheat starch granules under different freezing temperatures

•Freezing promotes double-helix disruption and retrogradation of starch granules.•Higher freezing temperatures result in more damage by ice crystals.•Oligosaccharides reduce frozen ice crystal damage and starch retrogradation.•A 16% xylooligosaccharides content has a good antifreeze effect.•The antifreeze effect of oligosaccharides is related to their structure. The effects of fructooligosaccharides (FOS), galactooligosaccharides (GOS), and xylooligosaccharides (XOS) on gelatinization, retrogradation, thermal properties and particle size of wheat starch at different freezing temperatures were studied. The results showed that the wheat starch porosity, particle size, peak viscosity increased with increasing freezing temperature. With the addition of 16% oligosaccharides to starch, the porosity, particle size, crystallinity, initial gelatinization temperature, peak value, breakdown and retrogradation viscosity of the starch granules significantly decreased in the order of XOS > GOS > FOS. However, the pasting temperature of the granules increased. The addition of oligosaccharides (especially XOS, which has the most significant effect in inhibiting starch retrogradation) can inhibit the formation of starch crystal structures to a certain extent, reduce the damage from ice crystals to starch granules and delay starch retrogradation. Therefore, functional oligosaccharides can be used as a potentially effective additive to increase freezing stability in frozen starch-based foods.