Abstract

One of the most important quality parameters of fried food is the amount of fat absorbed during the process, which undermines recent consumer trends toward healthier food and low-fat products. In order to obtain a product with a low fat content, it is essential to understand the mechanisms involved during the frying process, so that oil migration into the structure can be minimized. To get such an understanding, this chapter briefly describes the frying process from technological and scientific perspectives. First, it gives a general overview of the frying process and describes the most important quality attributes of fried food. Thereafter, it centers on key nutritional aspects, particularly on the effect of excessive oil consumption on human health, oil degradation, and toxic compounds generation in fried food. Finally, this chapter discusses the most important factors affecting oil absorption, oil absorption kinetics, and different strategies that may be adopted to decrease oil content. © 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.