DHT is a simple, safe, and environmentally friendly technique used for starch modification. The objective of this work was study the DHT conditions that most affect the maize starch gels, evaluating different temperatures and times. Maize/corn starch was placed in a tightly sealed aluminum foil envelope and dispersed in a thin, uniform layer of approximately 1 mm. The envelopes were heated at different conditions of temperature (110-150 °C) and time (1-6h) in a hot air convective oven. After that, the samples were ground and submitted to the gelatinization process using the RVA. The paste was stored under refrigeration for 24 h, and the obtained gels were evaluated through compression test. At the slower processing temperature (110 °C), a behavior very similar to the control starch was observed, which demonstrates a strong resistance of the granule to the treatment. However, as the temperature and time of DHT increased, the paste become less consistent. This indicates the DHT process caused a reduction in the granule’s ability to maintain its structure, probably weakening the starch chains. Analyzing the gel strength, only the more drastic conditions, such as temperatures of 140 and 150 °C from 3h processing time, resulted in gels that differed from the control, demonstrating to be weaker. It was not possible to obtain stronger gels within the evaluated conditions. The observed behavior differs from other sources, such as cassava and wheat, where the DHT process made it possible to obtain stronger gels than the control. These results are interesting because it allows a deeper evaluation of the effect of the DHT treatment on starches, searching for processing conditions that promote modified starches ideal for a given application.