The effect of high-pressure homogenization (HPH) on the microstructure, rheological properties, paste clarity, as well as gel retrogradation behavior of alkali-gelatinized high-amylose maize starch (HMS) was investigated. The alkali-treated HMS pastes were subjected to HPH at homogenizing pressures of 25, 50, 75, 100, and 125 MPa. After HPH treatment, the uniformity in the microstructure of HMS pastes was greatly increased. At homogenizing pressures greater than 100 MPa, starch ghost particles were found to completely disappear. The apparent viscosity of the HMS pastes was found to decrease significantly due to the application of HPH. The paste clarity of the HMS pastes increased when HPH treatment was applied. After storing at 4 degrees C for 7 days, HMS pastes homogenized at 50 and 100 MPa displayed weaker viscoelastic behavior than their corresponding unhomogenized pastes. This indicated that HPH treatment is capable of inhibiting starch retrogradation in gels. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.