Reduction of acrylamide formation in potato slices during frying

Reduction of acrylamide formation in potato chips was investigated in relation to frying temperature and three treatments before frying. Potato slices (Tivoli variety, diameter: 37 mm, width: 2.2 mm) were fried at 150°C, 170°C and 190°C until reaching moisture contents of ∼1.7 g water/100 g (total basis). Prior to frying, potato slices were treated in one of the following ways: (i) soaked in distilled water for 0 min (control), 40 min and 90 min; (ii) blanched in hot water at six different time-temperature combinations (50°C for 30 and 70 min; 70°C for 8 and 40 min; 90°C for 2 and 9 min); (iii) immersed in citric acid solutions of different concentrations (10 and 20 g/l) for half an hour. Glucose and asparagine concentration was determined in potato slices before frying, whereas acrylamide content was determined in the resultant fried potato chips. Glucose content decreased in ∼32% in potato slices soaked 90 min in distilled water. Soaked slices showed on average a reduction of acrylamide formation of 27%, 38% and 20% at 150°C, 170°C and 190°C, respectively, when they were compared against the control. Blanching reduced on average 76% and 68% of the glucose and asparagine content compared to the control. Potato slices blanched at 50°C for 70 min surprisingly had a very low acrylamide content (28 μm/kg) even when they were fried at 190°C. Potato immersion in citric acid solutions of 10 and 20 g/l reduced acrylamide formation by almost 70% for slices fried at 150°C. For the three pre-treatments studied, acrylamide formation increased dramatically as the frying temperature increased from 150°C to 190°C.     

The effect of asparaginase on acrylamide formation in French fries

Acrylamide formation in French fries was investigated in relation to blanching and asparaginase soaking treatments before final frying. Par-fried potatoes of Bintje variety were prepared by cutting strips (0.8 × 0.8 × 5 cm) which were blanched at 75 °C for 10 min. Unblanched strips were used as the control. Control or blanched strips were then dried at 85 °C for 10 min and immediately partially fried at 175 °C for 1 min. Finally, frozen par-fried potatoes were fried at 175 °C for 3 min to obtain French fries. Pre-drying of raw or blanched potato strips did not generate acrylamide formation as expected. Partial frying of pre-dried control potato strips generated 370 μg/kg of acrylamide and the final frying determined French fries with 2075 μg/kg of acrylamide. When control potato strips were treated with a 10000 ASNU/l asparaginase solution at 40 °C for 20 min, the acrylamide formation in French fries was reduced by 30%. When blanched potato strips were treated in the same way, the produced French fries have 60% less acrylamide content than blanched strips without the enzyme treatment. Soaking of blanched potato strips (75 °C, 10 min) in an 10000 ASNU/l asparaginase solution at 40 °C for 20 min is an effective way to reduce acrylamide formation after frying by reducing the amount of one of its important precursors such as asparagine.     

Acrylamide Mitigation in Potato Chips by Using NaCl

In April 2002, Swedish researchers shocked the world when they presented preliminary findings on the presence of acrylamide in fried and baked foods, most notably potato chips and French fries, at levels of 30–2,300 ppb. The objective of this research was to study the effect of immersing potato slices in a NaCl solution over the acrylamide formation in the resultant potato chips. Potato slices (Verdi variety, diameter 40 mm, width 2.0 mm) were fried at 170 °C for 5 min (final moisture content of ∼2.0%). Prior to frying, the potato slices were treated in one of the following ways: (1) control slices (unblanched or raw potato slices); (2) slices blanched at 90 °C for 5 min in water; (3) slices blanched at 90 °C for 5 min plus immersed in a 1 g/100 g NaCl solution at 25 °C for 5 min; (4) slices blanched at 90 °C for 5 min plus immersed in a 3 g/100 g NaCl solution at 25 °C for 5 min; (5) slices blanched at 90 °C for 5 min plus immersed in distilled water at 25 °C for 5 min; and (6) slices blanched at 90 °C for 5 min in a 3 g/100 g NaCl solution. Blanching followed by the immersion of potato slices in 1 g/100 g NaCl solution was effective in reducing acrylamide content in ∼62%; however, almost half of this percentage (∼27%) could be attributed to the effect of NaCl and 35% to the effect of the slight heating treatment during salt immersion step (25 °C for 5 min). Blanching seems to make the NaCl diffusion in potato tissue easier leading to a significant acrylamide reduction in the potato slices after frying.     

Optimization of the blanching process to reduce acrylamide in fried potatoes

A central composite design was used to study the effect of blanching time and temperature on the extraction of reducing sugars from potato strips and slices. After frying, the impact of both factors on the acrylamide content in French fries and potato crisps was evaluated. Acrylamide could be lowered more efficiently in potato crisps compared to French fries, due to a more pronounced extraction of sugars from potato slices upon blanching. In both products, blanching temperature was the main influencing factor for sugar extraction and subsequent acrylamide mitigation. Blanching at temperatures of about 70 °C for a short period of time (about 10 min) was more efficient compared to blanching at lower temperatures, which appeared more time-consuming. However, the extraction efficiency of reducing sugars was over 10% lower when the potato cuts were blanched in water which was previously used for blanching, leading to over 10% less reduction in the final acrylamide content.     

Kinetics of oil uptake during frying of potato slices:: Effect of pre-treatments

Oil uptake in fresh, blanched and, blanched and dried potato slices was studied during frying. Potato slices blanched in hot water (85 °C, 3.5 min) and potato slices blanched (85 °C, 3.5 min) and then dried until to a moisture content of ∼60 g/100 g (wet basis) were deep fried in sunflower oil at 120, 150 and 180 °C. A control treatment consisted of unblanched potato slices without the pre-drying treatment (fresh samples). It was studied applying two empirical kinetic models in order to fit the oil uptake during frying: (i) a first order model; (ii) a proposed model, with a linear time behavior for short times, while time independent for long times. Oil uptake was high even for short frying times at the different temperatures tested suggesting that oil wetting is an important mechanism of oil uptake during frying. For control slices, oil uptake increased approximately by 32% as the frying temperature decreased from 180 to 120 °C at moisture contents ?1 g water/g dry solid. No apparent effect of frying temperature in oil uptake was observed at moisture contents ?0.5 g water/g dry solid in fried slices previously blanched and dried. The two kinetic models studied fitted properly the values of oil uptake during frying, with similar correlation coefficient r².     

Color changes and acrylamide formation in fried potato slices

The objective of this work was to study the kinetics of browning during deep-fat frying of blanched and unblanched potato chips by using the dynamic method and to find a relationship between browning development and acrylamide formation. Prior to frying, potato slices were blanched in hot water at 85 °C for 3.5 min. Unblanched slices were used as the control. Control and blanched potato slices (Panda variety, diameter: 37 mm, width: 2.2 mm) were fried at 120, 150 and 180 °C until reaching moisture contents of ∼1.8% (total basis) and their acrylamide content and final color were measured. Color changes were recorded at different sampling times during frying at the three mentioned temperatures using the chromatic redness parameter a¹. Experimental data of surface temperature, moisture content and color change in potato chips during frying were fit to empirical relationships, with correlation coefficients greater than 90%. A first-order rate equation was used to model the kinetics of color change. In all cases, the Arrhenius activation energy decreases alongside with decreasing chip moisture content. Blanching reduced acrylamide formation in potato chips in ∼64% (average value) in comparison with control chips at the three oil temperatures tested. For the two pre-treatments studied, average acrylamide content increased ∼58 times as the frying temperature increased from 120 to 180 °C. There was a linear correlation between acrylamide content of potato chips and their color represented by the redness component a¹ in the range of the temperatures studied.     

A novel strategy of acrylamide mitigation in fried potatoes using asparaginase and high pressure technology

The potentiality of high pressure processing (HPP) to possibly enhance diffusion of asparaginase into raw potato sticks, and consequently on reduction of acrylamide levels in fried potatoes was evaluated. Raw potato sticks were immersed in asparaginase (10,000 ASNU/L) and immediately subjected to 0.1, 100, 200 and 400 MPa for 5 min, with total enzymatic reaction times of 5, 10 and 20 min and room temperature. Pressurized raw potato sticks became softer, more flexible, and required lower energy for cutting (up to 47% less); the roughness of potato surface and moisture content were slightly reduced; and the concentration of soluble solids in the exterior solutions increased, indicative of a leaching effect. Due to changes induced by asparaginase and/or HPP on raw potatoes, fried potatoes exhibited higher weight loss after frying, and higher hardness (crispness). The combined treatment with asparaginase and HPP showed to reduce acrylamide levels by 26–47%, while with asparaginase or HPP alone there was no significant reduction.Industrial relevanceHPP is a non-thermal technology that may be used as a pre-treatment for the production of fried potatoes with different/better textural and nutritional properties, as well as to reduce energetic costs of some industrial steps of the production of fried potatoes (for instance, the cutting process and frying time). Also, a combined pre-treatment with HPP and asparaginase may be used as a strategy of acrylamide mitigation in fried potatoes.     

Important factors to consider for acrylamide mitigation in potato crisps using pulsed electric fields

This preliminary study aimed to compare the application of pulsed electric field (PEF) with a traditional blanching as pre-treatments before frying for the mitigation of acrylamide content in potato crisps.Measuring the degree of cell disintegration index (p_o) and the changes in water electrical conductivity during washing of potato slices, PEF protocol and sample preparation scheme were optimized. Peeled potato slices (thickness 1.5 ± 0.2 mm) were subjected to PEF (1.5 kV/cm, pulse duration 10 μs, total treatment time 10 ms, pulse frequency 100 Hz) and to blanching (85 °C for 3.5 min) pre-treatments and then to washing in water, evaluating the reduction of acrylamide precursors (reducing sugars and free asparagine). After frying (175 °C, 3 min), product quality, in terms of colour, texture and acrylamide content were evaluated. Results showed that PEF promoted acrylamide precursors leaching followed by a reduction of the final acrylamide content of around 30%, significantly higher if compared to the reduction obtained with blanching, with only slight modifications of the final quality of the product, in terms of colour and texture.Industrial relevanceThe Commission Regulation (EU) 2017/2158 of 20 November 2017 has introduced new benchmark levels and mitigation strategies for the reduction of the presence of acrylamide in foods, directing food businesses to the research of measures to lower the acrylamide formation in foods. The actual industrial production process of fried potato crisps involves the use of many mitigation strategies, such as a blanching of raw potatoes. However, the traditional blanching treatment presents several practical drawbacks and leads to undesirable changes of the product quality. The application of PEF as a pre-treatment could reduce the acrylamide content in deep-fat fried potato crisps. This preliminary study gives important indications regarding the possibility of combining a PEF pre-treatment on raw potato slices with subsequent industrial processing steps for the production of potato crisps with low acrylamide concentration.     

Comparative study of physical and sensory properties of pre-treated potato slices during vacuum and atmospheric frying

The objective of this research was to study the effect of different processing conditions on physical and sensory properties of potato chips. Potato slices of Desirée and Panda varieties (diameter: 30 mm; thickness: 3 mm) were pre-treated in the following ways: (i) control or unblanched slices without pre-drying; (ii) blanched slices in hot water at 85 °C for 3.5 min and air-dried at 60 °C until a final moisture content of ∼0.6 kg water/kg dry solid; (iii) control slices soaked in a 3.5 kg/m³ sodium metabisulphite solution at 20 °C for 3 min and pH adjusted to 3. Pre-treated slices were fried at 120 and 140 °C under vacuum conditions (5.37 kPa, absolute pressure) and under atmospheric pressure until they reached a final moisture content of ∼1.8 kg water/100 kg (wet basis). An experimental design (3 × 2³) was used to analyze the effect of pre-treatment, potato variety, type of frying and frying temperature over the following responses: oil content, instrumental color and texture and sensory evaluation. Vacuum frying increased significantly (p < 0.05) oil content and decreased instrumental color and textural parameters. Sensory attributes, flavor quality and overall quality, were significantly improved using vacuum frying. The higher frying temperature (140 °C) increased ΔE, maximum breaking force, hardness and crispness and decreased L^* and b^* values. On the other hand, Panda potato variety improved the color of the product. A great improvement on color parameters was obtained using sulphited potato slices instead of the other pre-treatments. Although, the better flavor was obtained for control potato chips, no significant differences were found for overall quality between control and sulphited potato chips. Significant correlations (p < 0.01) between sensory and instrumental responses were found.     

Enzymatic mitigation of acrylamide in fried potato chips using asparaginase from Aspergillus terreus

Acrylamide in foods is declared as carcinogen. In the present work, the effect of enzymatic pretreatment and other parameters like enzyme concentration, frying conditions with respect to temperature and time, size of potato chips, and effect of sodium chloride and citric acid on mitigation of acrylamide were studied. The concentration of acrylamide in fried potatoes after the pretreatment was found to be 815.63 μg kg^?1. The optimised asparaginase concentration for the mitigation of acrylamide was calibrated as 4 U mL^?1, and optimised frying time and temperature were 15 min and 170 °C, respectively. An in‐depth kinetic relationship for the effect of asparaginase on the mitigation of acrylamide was studied. The prime novelty of the project is focused on the immobilisation of asparaginase to nanomagnetic particles for redundant usage with stabilised enzyme activity. The work projected three stables cycles of asparaginase activity and on further usage of the immobilised enzyme resulted in decreased activity. The repeated use of immobilised asparaginase provides the advantage of decreasing cost in processing.     

Effects of combined pretreatments on drying kinetics and quality of potato chips undergoing low-pressure superheated steam drying

Due to an increasing demand from health-conscious consumers more attention has been placed on investigating alternative techniques to replace conventional deep-fat frying to produce health-friendly snack products including potato chips. Recently, low-pressure superheated steam drying (LPSSD) has proved to have potential to produce fat-free potato chips if performed in combination with appropriate pre-drying treatments. In this study, the influences of various pretreatments and drying temperature on the LPSSD drying kinetics and quality parameters of dried potato chips were investigated. LPSSD of potato chips underwent various combined pretreatments, i.e., (a) blanching, (b) combined blanching and freezing, (c) blanching followed by immersion in glycerol solution and then freezing, and (d) combined blanching, immersion in monoglyceride solution and freezing, were carried out at different drying temperatures (70, 80, and 90 °C) at an absolute pressure of 7 kPa. The quality of the dried chips was then evaluated in terms of colors, texture (hardness, toughness and crispness) and microstructure. In terms of the drying behavior and the dried product quality, LPSSD at 90 °C with combined blanching and freezing pretreatments was proposed as the most favorable conditions for drying potato chips.     

Acrylamide in potato crisp—the effect of raw material and processing

Reducing sugars and free amino acids were analysed in slices from three potato cultivars before and after blanching (0-3 min). The potato crisps were deep fried at 185 °C for different times (3-8.5 min), and analysed for the concentration of acrylamide (AA) and moisture. Potato cultivar and the temperature during processing were important parameters for AA formation in potato crisps. The amount increased with an increase in the processing time. Blanching before deep-frying reduced the concentration of free asparagine and reducing sugar in the raw material. We found no effect of blanching as pretreatment on the concentration of AA in the potato crisps. Any relationship was not detected between the levels of asparagine in the different cultivars, before and after blanching, and the formation of AA in the crisp products. However, it was shown that the content of reducing sugars determined the level of AA after frying.     

Ultrasonic-assisted leaching of glucose and fructose as an alternative mitigation technology of acrylamide and 5- hydroxymethylfurfural in potato chips

The effect of ultrasound (480 W, 40 kHz) on the leaching of reducing sugars during the water soaking of potatoes slices (60, 70 and 80 °C- 1, 8 and 15 min) was investigated to reduce the formation of acrylamide (AA) and 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (5-HMF) in potato chips.Ultrasound (US) influenced abruptly the reducing sugar leaching during the first 15 min, significantly increasing their extraction rate (glucose: 60%, fructose: 30%) at all evaluated temperatures. When potato slices were treated with US, the formation of AA (~95%) and 5-HMF (~96%) were reduced significantly after frying. Although AA content did not correlate with glucose and fructose concentrations, 5-HMF did (r²: 0.80 and 0.83, respectively), probably because reducing sugars are their main precursors. The AA and 5-HMF concentrations of potato chips presented good correlation coefficient (r²:0.76), suggesting the use of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural as an acrylamide indicator for potato chips.     

Effect of Cooking Method (Baking Compared with Frying) on Acrylamide Level of Potato Chips

ABSTRACT:  The effect of cooking method (baking compared with frying) on acrylamide level of potato chips was investigated in this study. Baking and frying experiments were conducted at 170, 180, and 190 °C using potato slices with a thickness of 1.4 mm. Raw potatoes were analyzed for reducing sugars and asparagine. Surface and internal temperatures of potato slices were monitored during the experiments to better explain the results. Fried and baked chips were analyzed for acrylamide content using an LC-MS method. The results showed that acrylamide level of potato chips prepared by frying increased with frying temperature (19.6 ng/g at 170 °C, 39 ng/g at 180 °C, and 95 ng/g at 190 °C). In baking, however, the highest acrylamide level was observed in potato chips prepared at 170 °C (47.8 ng/g at 170 °C, 19.3 ng/g at 180 °C, and 29.7 ng/g at 190 °C). The results showed that baking at 170 °C more than doubled the acrylamide amount that formed upon frying at the same temperature, whereas at 180 and 190 °C, the acrylamide levels of chips prepared by baking were lower than their fried counterparts.     

Modeling water loss and oil uptake during vacuum frying of pre-treated potato slices

The objective of this research was to determine the kinetics of water loss and oil uptake during frying of pre-treated potato slices under vacuum and atmospheric pressure. Potato slices (diameter: 30 mm; width: 3 mm) were pre-treated in the following ways: (i) raw potato slices “control”; (ii) control slices were blanched in hot water at 85 °C for 3.5 min; (iii) blanched slices were dried in hot air until reaching a moisture content of ∼0.6 g water/g dry basis. The slices were fried under vacuum (5.37 kPa, absolute pressure, at 120, 130 and 140 °C) and atmospheric conditions (at 180 °C). Two models based on the Fick's law were used to describe water loss: (i) with a constant effective diffusive coefficient; and (ii) with a variable effective diffusive coefficient. Oil uptake data were fitted to an empirical model, with a linear behavior for short times whereas the model was time independent for long times. The variable diffusivity model better fitted experimental water loss, giving values of effective diffusivity between 4.73 × 10⁻⁹ and 1.80 × 10⁻⁸ m²/s. The proposed model for the study of the kinetics of oil uptake fitted the experimental data properly. Control and blanched vacuum fried potato chips increased their final oil contents to 57.1% and 75.4% respectively, when compared with those fried at atmospheric pressure. However, the oil absorption of dried vacuum fried potato chips diminished by ∼30%.     

Oil uptake and texture development in fried potato slices

The objective of this work was to study oil absorption and the kinetics of texture development of fried potato slices during frying. Prior to frying, potato slices were blanched in hot water at 85 °C for 3.5 min. Unblanched slices were used as the control. Control and blanched potato slices (Panda variety, diameter: 37 mm, width: 2.2 mm) were fried at 120, 150 and 180 °C until reaching moisture contents of 1.8% (total basis) and their texture and oil content were measured periodically. Oil uptake was higher in 15% for blanched samples than for control samples after 20 s of frying. Besides, the higher the frying temperature, the lower the oil absorption in control samples. Textural changes in fried potato slices were followed by the parameter maximum force (MF) extracted from the force vs. distance curves corresponding to different sampling times. Normalized maximum force (MF*) was used in modeling textural changes in the potato slices during frying in both the initial tissue softening process and the later crust development process. Higher temperatures accelerated these processes; however neither the temperature nor the pre-treatment had a significant effect (P > 0.05) over the final texture of the fried potato chips.     

Grading of Potato Chips According to Their Sensory Quality Determined by Color

Potato chips were classified in quality categories according to their color after frying at oil temperatures (120, 140, 160, and 180 ± 1 °C) and undergoing some pre-treatments (control or unblanching, blanching, and blanching plus drying). For each oil temperature, six time intervals were considered since the beginning of the frying process until the corresponding time at which potato slices reached a moisture content of 2%. In order to define quality categories according to the surface color, we worked with 79 frequent consumers of potato chips who classified the color scores of the potato chip photographs located in a standard color chart in the following categories: (1) desirable color, (2) still acceptable color and (3) nondesirable color. A sensory panel was formed with 12 judges who were selected according to simple tests of color ordering. This sensory panel evaluated the samples processed at different oil temperatures, frying times, and pre-treatments based on the standard color chart previously mentioned. For each measured point, the score from the color standard chart indicated for more than 50% of the panel members was selected. Finally, time-temperature modeling was achieved in order to get potato chip with the best color surface for the three pre-treatments tested.     

Reduction of acrylamide formation by selected agents in fried potato crisps on industrial scale

Great interest and rapid research efforts on acrylamide in foods followed an announcement in April 2002 by the Swedish National Food Authority and the University of Stockholm. Reduction of acrylamide in high-temperature processing foods, including selection of the raw material and variation of processing parameters, etc. were extensive reported. In this research, effect of some agents on acrylamide formation was investigated. A glucose-asparagines reaction model system was used to test the effect of ferulic acid, catechin, CaCl₂, NaHSO₃, and l-cysteine on inhibition of acrylamide formation and three efficient inhibitors, NaHSO₃, CaCl₂ and l-cysteine were screened. The results showed that immersing of the fresh potato chips using different concentration of the agents greatly inhibited acrylamide formation in fried potato crisps, and the efficiency increased as their concentrations increased; among them, l-cysteine is the most efficient agent but CaCl₂ is most potential. Effects of these food additives on the texture of fried potato crisps were also studied. It was found that l-cysteine showed little effect on the texture of the crisps and CaCl₂ is regarded as the suitable choice because of its low price and the acceptable mouth feel of fried crisps treated by CaCl₂, although it increased the brittleness. Moreover, the application of CaCl₂ in industrial production of fried potato crisps was also studied. In the blanching process (deactivation process of enzymes at 85 °C), a computerized electrical conductivity detector was used to keep the concentration of CaCl₂ at constant and the result showed that immersion of potato slices in CaCl₂ solution at 5 g/L reduced acrylamide formation by more than 85% in fried crisps.Industrial relevanceThis research presents a technology to inhibit acrylamide formation in fried potato chips by immersion of fresh potato chips with some food additives. The approach suggested that cysteine and calcium chloride significantly decreased the content of acrylamide in fried potato chips and their concentrations could be kept constant by using a conductor as a detector.     

Acrylamide content and color development in fried potato strips

Acrylamide formation and changes in color of fried potato strips was investigated in relation to frying temperature and three treatments before frying. Potato strips (0.8 × 0.8 × 5 cm) of Bintje variety were fried at 150, 170 and 190 °C until reaching moisture contents of ∼40 g water/100 g (total basis). Prior to frying, potato strips were treated in one of the following ways: (i) immersed in distilled water for 0 min (control), 60 min and 120 min; (ii) blanched in hot water at six different time–temperature combinations (50 °C for 40 and 80 min; 70 °C for 10 and 45 min; 90 °C for 3 and 10 min); (iii) immersed in a citric acid solution of 10 g/L for an hour; (iv) immersed in a sodium pyrophosphate solution of 10 g/L for an hour. Acrylamide content and color was determined in the potato strips after frying. Immersed strips in water for 120 min showed a reduction of acrylamide formation of 33%, 21% and 27% at 150, 170 and 190 °C, respectively, when they were compared against the control. Potato strips blanched at 50 °C for 80 min had the lowest acrylamide content when compared against strips blanched at different conditions and fried at the same temperature (135, 327 and 564 μm acrylamide/kg for 150, 170 and 190 °C, respectively). Potato strip immersion in citric acid solution of 10 g/L reduced much more the acrylamide formation after frying than the strip immersion in sodium pyrophosphate solution of 10 g/L (53% vs. 17%, respectively, average values for the three temperatures tested). Acrylamide formation decreased dramatically as the frying temperature decreased from 190 to 150 °C for all the pre-treatments tested. Color represented by the parameters L* and a* showed high correlations (r² of 0.79 and 0.83, respectively) with French fry acrylamide content.     

Effect of innovative pre-treatments on the mitigation of acrylamide formation in potato chips

The aim of this research was to evaluate the reduction of acrylamide (AA) formation in potato chips applying innovative pre-treatments. Raw potato slices were subjected for 5 and 15 min to: dipping in water; dipping in Aureobasidium pullulans L1 yeast water suspension; dipping in water or in yeast water suspension after pulsed electric fields (PEF) in order to investigate a possible synergistic effect of pre-treatments. The raw potato samples were analysed for AA precursors and, after frying, for AA by using HPLC-MS/MS. In addition, the final potato chips main quality parameters were evaluated.Compared to untreated potato chips, yeast treatment promoted a reduction of AA formation mainly at the longest dipping time (15 min). PEF treatment followed by water dipping was the most effective in reducing AA for both the studied treatment times. The combination of PEF and yeast treatments led only a slight reduction of AA formation.Industrial relevanceThe Commission Regulation (EU) 2017/2158 has established new acrylamide (AA) benchmark levels in different foods due to its negative classification as “probably carcinogenic to human”. For this reason, food industries are interested in developing different processing methods to reduce the AA formation and at the same time to maintain an acceptable quality of final products. Fried potatoes (French fries and chips) are the most vulnerable foods in terms of high content of AA formation, being rich in the main Maillard reaction substrates, such as asparagine and reducing sugars, and characterized by a high surface to volume ratio. Among the strategies recently suggested for the reduction of AA in potato chips, pulsed electric fields (PEF) and yeast pre-treatments are very promising, having the potentiality to reduce AA precursors in raw potato tissues. In this study the possibility to apply yeast and PEF pre-treatments on raw potato slices with suitable processing times for a possible industrial application were evaluated.