Optimising the baking and frying process using oil-improving agents

Abstract

Despite slimness mania and acrylamide scare, the market of fried products is still growing. Frying is an extremely effective way to cook food. A fried product tastes good, has a good flavour and is prepared within a few minutes. Every effort has been made to optimise the frying process. With regard to the quality of the fried food, the quality of the frying oil is very important. In the past, important characteristics of industrial frying oils were oxidative stability, high smoke point and low foaming. Nowadays, new frying fats with various additives, with a healthier fatty acid profile and higher heat stability are emerging. Emulsifiers, anti-polymerising agents, and natural and synthetic antioxidants improve the performance during frying. Sesamol, rosemary and other natural extracts display strong stabilising effects during the frying operations. Filtration and the use of heat-stabilising additives help to retard fat degradation and give the producer a larger time-window for optimum frying. The effectiveness of the treatment with filter aids or mineral adsorbents and the stabilising effects of synthetic and natural agents were compared by using the Rancimat test for testing oxidative stability and the OSET (oxidative stability at elevated temperature) test to determine the stability at the frying temperature.