Low-linolenic acid soybean oil—Alternatives to frying oils

Oil was hexane-extracted from soybeans that had been modified by hybridization breeding for low-linolenic acid (18∶3) content. Extracted crude oils were processed to finished edible oils by laboratory simulations of commercial oil processing procedures. Oils from three germplasm lines N83-375 (5.5% 18∶3), N89-2009 (2.9% 18∶3) and N85-2176 (1.9% 18∶3) were compared to commercial unhydrogenated soybean salad oil with 6.2% 18∶3 and two hydrogenated soybean frying oils, HSBOI (4.1% 18∶3) and HSBOII (<0.2% 18∶3). Low-18∶3 oils produced by hybridization showed significantly lower room odor intensity scores than the commercial soybean salad oil and the commercial frying oils. The N85-2176 oil with an 18∶3 content below 2.0% showed no fishy odor after 10 h at 190°C and lower burnt and acrid odors after 20 h of use when compared to the commercial oils. Flavor quality of potatoes fried with the N85-2176 oil at 190°C after 10 and 20 h was good, and significantly better at both time periods than that of potatoes fried in the unhydrogenated oil or in the hydrogenated oils. Flavor quality scores of potatoes fried in the N89-2009 oil (2.9% 18∶3) after 10 and 20 h was good and equal to that of potatoes fried in the HSBOI oil (4.1% 18∶3). Fishy flavors, perceived with potatoes fried in the low-18∶3 oils, were significantly lower than those reported for potatoes fried in the unhydrogenated control oil, and the potatoes lacked the hydrogenated flavors of potatoes fried in hydrogenated oils. These results indicate that oils with lowered linolenic acid content produced by hybridization breeding of soybeans are potential alternatives to hydrogenated frying oils.