The influence of batter formulation and predrying time on interparticle space fractions of a coated meat analog

The purpose of the study was to understand the mechanism of microstructural changes in vegetable‐based meat analogs coated with different batter formulations. A meat analog (substrate) was developed by using vegetable proteins, coated with batters formulated from different combinations of wheat and rice flours, predried at various durations, and subsequently fried. The effect of batter formulation, predrying time, and frying time on spaces occupied by air (porosity, SOA), moisture (SOM), and fat (SOF) in the core region (the meat analog) was studied. The SOA, SOM, and SOF ranged between 8.28–32.72%, 16.73–58.31%, and 16.73–58.31%, respectively. All three fractions of pores in the meat analog were significantly influenced by predrying and frying times; however, batter formulation did not show any significant influence. Batter formulation did not show any significant influence on moisture and fat content within the meat analog. Fat content was not influenced by frying time; and only 90 min predrying made a difference.     

Porosity determination of deep‐fat‐fried coatings using pycnometer (Fried batter porosity determination by pycnometer)

The effect of processing conditions such as frying time and temperature, and batter formulation on pore development in deep‐fat fried chicken nuggets coatings were studied using helium pycnometer method. Chicken nuggets with preformed and laboratory prepared batter coatings were fried at temperatures between 170 and 190 °C for a time range between 0 and 240 s. There was significant (P < 0.05) effect of frying temperature and batter formulation on porosity. Porosity increased with frying time and temperature, and ranged between 2.15 and 47.92% for the preformed batter and 9.96 and 54.76% for the formulated batters. Apparent and bulk densities of the preformed batters increased and decreased with frying time, respectively, but both declined gradually with increasing frying temperature. As the level of rice flour in the formulation increased, apparent and bulk densities also increased. Batter formulation and frying temperature significantly (P < 0.05) influenced the variation in moisture and fat content of the fried batter. Porosity demonstrated positive and negative correlation with fat uptake and moisture loss, respectively, for all the batter coatings.     

Acrylamide formation in different batter formulations during microwave frying

Acrylamide, a probable human carcinogen, is found to be formed in a wide range of fried foods. In this study, the effects of microwave frying on acrylamide formation in the coating part of chicken were investigated. It was also aimed to determine the effects of various flour types (soy, chickpea and rice flour) in batter formulations on the acrylamide formation and on the color of fried chicken. Usage of all flour types except soy flour resulted in approximately the same moisture content and color development after 1.5 min of microwave frying. Acrylamide contents of batter parts of 1.5 min microwave fried samples having different flours were similar. Microwave frying provided lower acrylamide content and lighter color as compared to those fried conventionally for 5 min for all types of flours. This reduction in acrylamide level was the highest (34.5%) for rice flour containing batter.     

Preparation of low-fat uptake frying batter composite by dry particle coating of microparticulated soybean hull

This study examined the influence of soybean hull-coated frying batter composite on fat uptake during deep fat frying. Soybean hull was microparticulated by impact mill at impact mill speed (IMS) of 6000, 10,000 and 14,000 rpm, and air-classified into coarse and fine fractions at Air Classifying Wheel Speed (ACWS) of 4000, 8000 and 12,000 rpm, respectively. Each soybean hull was dry-coated into wheat flour by dry particle coating system. As the difference in particle size between wheat flour and soybean hull got larger, the coating process became more effective, which indicates the size difference between wheat flour and soybean hull was important for coating effectiveness. When the ratios of wheat flour to soybean hull were 99:1 and 95:5, there were about 3.3 (g/100 g) and 24.4 (g/100 g) of fat content reduction, respectively. Inner crust structures showed slight reduction in cell size and improved cellular integrity with shrinkage in the cell membrane, with increase in soybean hull content. This means soybean hull can form a protective layer and can be applied to the food industry as a frying batter composite to reduce fat uptake.     

Effects of microwave frying and different flour types addition on the microstructure of batter coatings

In this study, the influences of microwave frying and various flour types on microstructure of batter coatings were investigated. Control batter formulation contained only wheat and corn flour. To determine the effects of different flour types, 30% of the corn and wheat flour mix was replaced with chickpea, rice or soy flours. Frying was performed in microwave oven at 365 W (70%) power level for 1.5 min after bringing the oil temperature to 180 ± 1 °C. Samples were also fried in a conventional fryer at 180 °C for 1.5 and 5.0 min for comparison. Microwave fried samples had higher specific bulk volume and porosity values and also smoother inner surface as compared to conventionally fried samples. Porosity values of different batter formulations were in the range of 0.425–0.484 in 1.5 min microwave fried chicken samples and 0.348–0.392 in 5.0 min conventionally fried ones. Microwave fried samples had comparable or lower hardness values than the conventionally fried ones depending on the flour type used in batter formulation. Microstructure of fried batter was different for different batter formulations. Microwave fried control and chickpea flour containing batter provided formation of larger gas cells on the outer surface. Soy flour containing batter resulted in smallest size gas cells for both frying methods.     

Effect of batter formulation on lipid uptake during frying and lipid fraction of frozen battered squid

The present paper studies the influence that batter ingredients (wheat flour, corn flour, salt and leavening agent) have on fat content and oxidative degradation of the lipid fraction of deep-fried frozen battered squid. The use of a leavening agent significantly increases the fat content during frying; the generation of gas cells where oil easily lodges is the most important event observed by scanning electron microscopy when this additive is used in the formulation. The addition of salt in the formulation also increases fat content, but replacement of wheat flour by corn flour decreases significantly the oil content of the battered squids. The acidity index values indicate a relatively low degree of hydrolysis for all the batters studied. The batter formulation influences the degree of oxidation of the lipid fraction of the deep-fried products; the battered product with leavening in its formulation shows a lesser oxidation (P<0.05), which might be connected with the high absorption of oil during deep fat frying.     

Effects of Soy and Corn Flour Addition on Batter Rheology and Quality of Deep Fat-Fried Shrimp Nuggets

In this paper, the effects of soy and corn flour (5 and 10% w/w) addition to the batter formulation on the quality of deep fat-fried shrimp nuggets were evaluated. Rheological properties of batters, coating pick-up, moisture content, and oil content of the samples were determined. Shrimp nuggets were fried at 150 °C, 170 °C, 190 °C, for 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 min. The coating pick-up, oil and moisture content were found to be directly proportional to batter viscosity. All batters were found to show shear thinning behavior by exhibiting flow behavior index ≤ 1. The batters were modeled as power law fluids. Batter formulation, frying time, and temperature significantly (p < 0.01) affected moisture and oil content of shrimp nuggets. Soy flour added batters provided the highest consistency index, 7.595 and 10.635 Pa.sⁿ for 5% and 10% soy flour added, respectively. Soy flour was found to be an effective ingredient in decreasing oil content of fried nuggets. Batters containing 5% corn flour showed the lowest moisture content and the highest oil content among all the formulations. The mean moisture and fat content of shrimp nuggets coated with batter contained 10% soy and 5% corn flour, fried at 190 °C, for 5 min were 0.59 ± 0.022, 0.480 ± 0.029 and 0.149 ± 0.035, 0.346 ± 0.024 (g/g db), respectively.     

Effects of food gums and pre-drying on fat content of fabricated fried chips

Deep-frying contributes to the unique taste and texture of fried products. However, they are low in nutritional value. Food industries actively trying to find ways to reduce the fat content while maintaining organoleptic properties of fried foods. In this work, effects of pre-drying and adding food gums on the moisture and fat contents of chips were evaluated. The chips were pre-dried for 60 and 90 min, and gellan gum, guar gum, methylcellulose and xanthan gum were added at the concentration of 0.25, 0.75, 1 and 2 % w/w. The xanthan gum was the most effective gum for fat reduction. The addition of 0.25 % w/w xanthan gum and at 90 min pre-drying reduced the fat content from 20 % (control) to 15 % w/w. The results also indicated that the reduction of moisture content after frying was not affected by the type of gums but the method of pre-drying.     

Effects of pre-heating temperature and formulation on porosity,moisture content,and fat content of fried batters

The effect of pre-heating temperatures on moisture and fat contents, and porosity of fried batters was studied. Batter pre-heated at 60 °C showed higher moisture content, lower fat content and lower porosity than non-pre-heated batter and batters pre-heated at 70 and 80 °C. Moisture content, fat content, and porosity at 4 min frying for batters with different pre-heating treatments ranged from 35.08 to 39.37, 3.92 to 5.16, and 13.14 to 45.31 %, respectively. Because of significant reduction in fat content, 60 °C pre-heating temperature was chosen to study the effect of batter formulations on moisture and fat contents, and porosity. Different wheat to rice flour ratios were prepared, and then each batter was pre-heated at 60 °C. Batters with higher wheat flour content showed higher moisture content, and lower fat content and porosity than batters with higher rice flour.     

Characteristics and oil absorption in deep‐fat fried batter prepared from ball‐milled wheat flour

BACKGROUND: The porous structure generated during frying influences oil absorption and textural qualities. The alteration in physical properties of wheat flour is suspected to affect the structure formation. The present study investigated the effect of physicochemical changes in wheat flour by the ball‐milling process on structure formation and consequently oil absorption of a fried wheat flour batter model. RESULTS: Batter models containing 600 g kg^?1 moisture were made of 0–10 h ball‐milled wheat flour and then fried in frying oil at 150 °C for 1–7 min. The samples made of milled flour possess larger pores and exhibit lower oil absorption than sample made of 0 h milled flour. The fracture force of a fried sample prepared from 5 and 10 h milled flour is lower than that of a sample prepared from 0 h milled flour. CONCLUSION: The decrease in glass transition temperature (T_g) and melting temperature (T_m) of milled flour affect the microstructure formation in the fried wheat flour batter. The microstructure is responsible for oil absorption and fracturability in fried food. The samples made of flour of longer ball‐milling time have lower oil absorption and higher crispness. Ball‐milling may be a tool to produce mechanically modified wheat flour which can reduce oil absorption for fried batter. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry     

Particle Size Fractionation of High-Amylose Rice (Goami 2) Flour as an Oil Barrier in a Batter-Coated Fried System

The particle size effects of high-amylose rice (Goami 2) flour on quality attributes of frying batters were characterized in terms of physicochemical, rheological, and oil-resisting properties. High-amylose rice flours were fractionated into four fractions (70, 198, 256, and 415 μm) of which morphology was also analyzed by scanning electron microscopy. Rice flour with smaller particle size exhibited a higher degree of starch gelatinization, giving rise to increased pasting parameters. When the rice flours were incorporated into frying batters, higher steady shear viscosity was observed in the batters with finer rice flour, which could be well characterized by the power law model. In addition, the dynamic viscoelastic properties of the batters were enhanced by the use of rice flour with smaller particle size, which also caused an increase in batter pickup. When subjected to deep fat frying, the batters with finer rice flour exhibited reduced moisture loss. Furthermore, the oil uptake was found to have a positive correlation with the particle size of rice flour (R ²?=?0.88), even showing the reduction of oil uptake by 15%. It could be synergistically attributed to the formation of outer starch granular layers, high batter viscosity/pickup, and reduced moisture loss by finer rice flour.     

Thermal properties of batter systems formulated by combinations of different flours

There is an increasing consumer preference for reduced oil content in fried food products. The amount of fat absorbed by deep fried foods can be modified using appropriate coatings such as batter and breading systems. Coatings also change the heat transfer characteristics of the composite products. The goal of this study was to determine some thermal properties of selected batter mixes that are commonly used for deep fat frying of chicken products. Three types of flour-based batter mixes were used. These were mixtures of wheat and rice (WR), wheat and corn (WC), and corn and rice (CR) flours with salt and different methylcellulose (MC) levels. The differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) was used to measure glass transition temperature (T_g), gelatinization temperature (T_G), ice-melting temperature (T_m) and enthalpy (ΔH_G) of the different batter formulations. Salt and MC greatly influenced the thermal properties of batter systems as they increased T_G, but depressed T_m. Adding rice and corn flours to wheat flour based batters apparently changed the thermal properties. Corn flour based batters required considerable more energy for gelatinization during the cooking process.     

Food components affecting the oil absorption and crispness of fried batter

Frying batters are used to add value to a product by improving texture, flavour, weight and volume and reducing water loss during frying which, in turn, lessens oil absorption. The physical characteristics of fried batters were studied using model systems based on rice flours. Crispness was positively correlated with amylose content, while oil absorption was negatively correlated with amylose content. Addition of pregelatinised rice flour improved crispness but resulted in increased oil absorption because of the porous nature of the fried product. Amongst the proteins (egg yolk, gluten, skimmed milk, whey and ovalbumin) studied, ovalbumin was able to reduce oil absorption and improve the crispness of the fried batter. Addition of calcium chloride also reduced oil absorption and improved crispness, while a little oil reduced the oil content of the fried batter and improved its taste. Addition of ovalbumin, oil or calcium chloride beyond the optimal levels reduced crispness and increased oil absorption in a linear manner. Modified tapioca starch and diglyceride emulsifiers improved crispness but increased oil absorption. The amount of water added to the formulation affected the physical characteristics of the fried batter. The optimal formulation for a crisp frying batter with reasonably low oil absorption was an amylose/amylopectin ratio of about 18: 67; with (g kg⁻¹) 850 pregelatinised rice flour; up to 150 modified tapioca starch; 30 ovalbumin; 1 calcium chloride; 20 oil; 20 emulsifier and a water/flour ratio of 2:1. © 1998 Society of Chemical Industry.     

Microstructural evaluation of deep-fat fried chicken nugget batter coating using confocal laser scanning microscopy

Porosity and pore size distribution are very important microstructural properties of fried foods needed in process optimization and product development. The objective of this study was to characterize the pore properties and quantify fat distribution in deep-fat fried chicken nuggets batter coating using confocal laser scanning microscopy. Samples were fried at three temperatures namely 170, 180 and 190 °C. Detached batter coatings were stained non-covalently and 2-D images were obtained at fluorescence and reflection modes of the microscope. The images were analyzed for fat and pore distribution. Fat distribution obtained from image analysis was significantly (P < 0.05) affected by the frying temperature and time, and it decreased within the depth of the sample thickness. There was a strong correlation between fat distribution and fat content obtained by the conventional method at two temperatures, 180 and 190 °C. Porosity ranged between 4.97% and 32.7% and was significantly influenced by frying temperature. Pore size varied approximately between 1.20 and 550 μm. Frying process led to the formation of more micropores (pores < 40 μm) and bigger (pore ? 216 μm) pores.     

Machine learning workflow for the oil uptake prediction of rice flour in a batter-coated fried system

Machine learning algorithms were applied to predict the oil uptake of rice flour in batter-coated fried foods, depending on its physicochemical features before frying (amylose content, pasting parameters, and batter viscosity). Low coefficients of Pearson correlation (0.29–0.61) were observed between the oil uptake of rice frying batters and other physicochemical parameters. Based on an exhaustive search method by the regsubsets function, the four experimental features (amylose content, peak time, peak temperature, and final viscosity) were selected as the best subset to affect the oil uptake of rice batters after frying, and then subjected to two machine learning algorithms – multivariable linear regression and multilayer perceptron neural network. Based on K-fold cross-validation, the experimental results were divided into 5 datasets consisting of each 80% training and 20% testing dataset. Compared to the multivariable linear regression (R² = 0.6204–0.7219), the iterative application of the multilayer perceptron model made a relatively higher prediction (R² = 0.7388–0.7781) of the oil uptake of rice flour frying batter. Thus, the multilayer perception model with a hidden layer outperformed the multivariable linear regression by showing higher R² and lower relative error.     

Effects of potato strip size and pre-drying method on french fries quality

Potato strips of 8 mm × 8 mm and 10 mm × 10 mm after blanching were pre-dried using two methods: convective and vacuum-microwave (VM). A two-stage frying in rapeseed oil was applied to prepare French fries from pre-dried potato strips. The quality of French fries in terms of texture, oil content and color was analyzed based on the results from instrumental tests and sensory evaluation. Using vacuum-microwave instead of hot air resulted in substantial shortening of the potato strips’ pre-drying time and decreasing the fat content in French fries. Pre-drying of potato strips, particularly by VM method, improved color and increased maximum cutting force as well as maximum cutting work estimated for French fries. French fries prepared from potato strips of 10 mm × 10 mm exhibited lower lightness, higher fat content and higher cutting strength compared with those made from potato strips of 8 mm × 8 mm. Based on the sensory results, it was found that the best French fries were those from pre-dried potato strips of 8 mm × 8 mm, independently of the pre-drying method used, and the worse were those from potato strips of 10 mm × 10 mm pre-dried with the convective method. SEM images confirmed structural changes occurred in potato tissue during pre-drying and frying.     

低脂油炸外裹糊鱼块的制备工艺优化

以外裹糊鲢鱼块为材料,通过研究外裹粉-水质量比（粉水比）、搅拌时间对油炸外裹糊鲢鱼块油脂含量、水分含量、裹糊率的影响及油炸和冷却条件对油炸外裹糊鲢鱼块油脂含量、水分含量、色泽、微观结构和油脂传递的影响,优化制备工艺,减少产品油脂含量。结果显示：粉水比12∶11（g/g）、搅拌时间10 min、170 ℃初炸40 s和190 ℃复炸30 s、30 ℃冷却60 min时,油炸外裹糊鲢鱼块外裹糊和内部鱼块油脂含量分别为19.83%和1.85%。该制备工艺显著减少了油炸外裹糊鲢鱼块的油脂含量,可用于指导规模化生产。     

Edible Coating Effects on Fried Potato Balls

The effects of various treatments and frying times on some physical, chemical, and sensorial properties of potato balls coated with chickpea and wheat flour were studied. Potato balls were pre-dusted with chickpea flour (CF) or wheat flour (WF) as an initial coating which was followed by dipping into 0.1% xanthum gum solution as the second coating. The last coating was breading with 1:3 CF/WF, 1:1 CF/WF, and 3:1 CF/WF mixtures. Coated potato balls were fried at 185 °C for 5, 7, and 9 min. The pre-dusting materials, particularly the effect of CF, enhanced yield values and sensorial properties as well as increased adhesion degree as it decreased frying loss. Although, the breading materials raised the yield values compared to the control, the yield and moisture content values decreased with increasing frying time. Frying loss, fat absorption, penetrometer values, and texture values also increased. Results revealed that CF is suitable as a pre-dusting material, and 7 min was the more efficient frying time for coated potato balls.     

Okara flours from chickpea and soy are thickeners: increased dough viscosity and moisture content in gluten-free bread

The by-product of plant-based beverages, okara, can be dried in a nutritious flour, but it generates dense bakery products due to high water absorption. Gluten-free bread often tastes dry, so the objective of this work was evaluating okara flour as thickener for mouthfeel enhancement. Proximate analysis revealed that chickpea okara contained more starch than soy (35.3 vs. 3.41 g/100 g), less insoluble fibre (43.3 vs. 57.0 g/100 g) and protein (9.51 vs. 18.1 g/100 g). Water absorption capacity was higher in okara than flour and for soy (8.29 vs. 6.01 g g⁻¹, respectively). When added to a gluten-free batter, both okara flours significantly increased viscosity. Upon addition of either okara to gluten-free bread (2% w/w) moisture content increased from 31.6 to 33.5 and 36.5 g/100 g, while crumb hardness increased by up to 45% and specific loaf volume decreased by up to 42%. Soy okara flour enhanced moistness of gluten-free bread.     

Effects of Initial Moisture Content on the Oil Absorption Behavior of Potato Chips During Frying Process

During frying process, whether and how moisture content in materials affects oil absorption remain unclear. Herein, we provided direct evidence suggesting that although the initial moisture content had no significant effect either on the final oil content or oil fraction, the moisture content did greatly affect the rate of oil absorption. We analyzed the total oil (TO), surface oil (SO), structural oil (STO), penetrated surface oil (PSO), and oil distribution during frying process in once-fried and twice-fried potato chips, and found that SO fraction was lowest (about 0.90-1.66 %) among three different fractions of TO, while PSO was the dominant section (about 50 %) for TO. Surprisingly, there were no significant difference among the final TO, SO, STO, and PSO for two kinds potato chips (P > 0.05), a finding suggesting that the initial moisture content itself might have no effect on oil absorption. Compared with once-fried potato chips, twice-fried chips much quicker (around sevenfold) reached equilibrium at 180 °C, which might be attributed to no inner resistance of water evaporation in twice-fried potato chips. More importantly, our confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) inspection established that oil of twice-fried chips entered the core faster than once-fried chips. Oil followed the cell shapes and located in cell walls and inside the intercellular spaces for both samples. Taken together, this study provided compelling new data to clarify the relationship between the initial moisture content and oil absorption during frying process, and laid the groundwork for introducing a pre-drying strategy to frying process in food industry.