Corn starch inclusion complexes of alkyl gallates (typical phenololipid representatives), including stearyl gallate, dodecyl gallate, octyl gallate, and hexadecyl gallate, were synthesized by using a heat treatment method. Such inclusion complexes exhibited significantly improved two-step release properties for gallic acid. In other words, gallic acid was generated via the breakdown of alkyl gallates that were released from inclusion complexes in an everted rat intestinal sac model, as determined by HPLC-UV analysis. The produced gallic acid could subsequently pass through intestinal membranes. On the other hand, a glucose oxidase-peroxidase analysis revealed that starch inclusion complexes can slow down starch digestion by increasing the proportion of resistant starch (from 12.2 % to 14.5-30.8 %) and decreasing the proportion of rapidly digestible starch (from 51.2 % to 39.4-49.2 %). Importantly, the two-step release characteristics of gallic acid and the retardation behavior of starch digestion can be easily regulated by modifying the acyl carbon chain length.