The aim of the work is to explore the relationship between the instrument and sensory data and to select the type of probes suitable for determining the texture of French fries. Ten commercial French fries were assessed using different probe types and perceived sensations through descriptive analysis. The eight sensory attributes developed by trained panelists can distinguish samples well. Simultaneously, the result of instrument data analysis revealed that the variation coefficient of threepoint bending was the largest, which indicates that the measurement accuracy was lower. The compression test showed significant correlation with most of the sensory attributes (r = .64-.90), while the cut test with a Volodkevich Bite Jaws probe does not correlate with all sensory attributes (r = .03-.49). Among these instrumental methods, compression, blade with guillotine probe, and puncture test are recommended for texture measuring of French fries. These results will provide a timesaving and efficient method for determining the texture of French fries. K E Y W O R D SFrench fries, instrumental-sensory relationships, mechanical texture analysis, sensory texture evaluation

BACKGROUND Several researchers have reported that the texture of fries is affected by the fatty acid composition of oil, although the mechanism of this effect is not clear. In this regard, fries were fried in refined rapeseed oil and fully hydrogenated rapeseed oil with diverse proportions (0%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80% and 100%) and were analyzed based on the content of moisture and oil, texture, thermal properties, crystalline properties and microstructure. RESULTS The outcomes presented that fries fried in fully hydrogenated oil had less oil absorption and moisture loss than those fried in refined oil. The results from the texture analyzer, differential scanning calorimetry and X‐ray diffraction showed that hardness, enthalpy and relative crystallinity increased with an increase in the proportion of fully hydrogenated oil. However, the peaks of starch–lipid complexes were hardly observed during frying. Furthermore, scanning electron microscopy results displayed that some physically trapped fat was observed in fries fried in mixed hydrogenated oil. Stereomicroscope images showed that the crust thickness of the fries increased slightly with an increase in the proportion of fully hydrogenated oil. CONCLUSION Overall, the upsurge in crust thickness and oil crystals was responsible for an increase in the hardness of the fries. This indicated that the texture of fries can be manipulated by altering the fatty acid composition of the oil. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry