Oil Distribution in Fried Potatoes Monitored by Infrared Microspectroscopy

During the last decade much attention has been given to investigating oil absorption during frying. Several studies have suggested the key role of the dehydrated crust, which is thought to control the main mechanisms in oil absorption, that is drainage and capillary suction during post‐frying cooling. To contribute to a better understanding of these mechanisms, we have used infrared microspectroscopy at the Synchrotron Radiation Source at Daresbury (UK) to monitor the oil distribution in fried potato cylinders. We report what we believe to be the first quantitative data on oil distribution within a fried product. Results show that the oil distribution within the crust reflects the anisotropic nature of the porous region in accordance with the proposed mechanism of oil absorption.