Effect of pore characteristics on oil absorption behavior during frying of potato chips

Abstract

Developing an adequate understanding of oil absorption helps in producing healthier fried foods, however mechanism of oil absorption is required to be clarified. In this study, influence of porous structure on oil penetration and distribution of potato chips during frying was investigated. The results showed that pores with diameters 10–100 μm owned 49.37%–67.36% of total pore volume and its proportion increased during frying. Oil content increased to 61.20% at the frying time of 160 s, and oil gradually permeated samples during frying. Additionally, the pores with diameters of 10–100 μm and 100–200 μm possessed the positively correlation with oil content (p < 0.01). While pores with diameters of 0.3–10 μm was negatively correlated with oil content (p < 0.05). Bulk density decreased, while porosity, pore volume, and pore size increased during frying. This study provided a new insight into illustrate oil absorption of fried foods.