Cooking of Salt Free or Reduced Salt Breakfast Cereals

A method for preparing a cooked cereal composition of low salt content which nonetheless has a good cooked cereal flavor in a short cook process, comprising the steps of:

• A. extruder cooking a mixture of a farinaceous material, sufficient amounts of an edible acid to provide a pH of about 3.5-5.7, less than about 1.8% sodium chloride, sufficient amounts of added total salts to provide a conductivity of about 0.1-28 mS/cm, and water under conditions of heat and pressure to gelatinize the starch component of the farinaceous material and about 3 for 120 seconds to form a cooked cereal dough of enhanced cooked cereal flavor and reduced salt content;
• B. forming the cooked cereal dough into pieces of desired shape and size;
• and
• C. drying the pieces to form ready-to-eat cereals.

A dry, low salt R-T-E cereal composition of superior flavor, comprising:

• A. about 80% to 95% by weight of the composition of a farinaceous component;
• B. sufficient amounts of water soluble salts to provide a conductivity ranging from about 0.1-2.8 mS/cm;
• and,
• C. sufficient amounts of added edible acid to provide a pH of about 3.5-5.7.