Nutrition, Sensory Evaluation, and Performance Analysis of Trans fat-Free, Low Alpha-Linolenic Acid Frying Oils

Abstract

The FDA now requires the labeling of trans fats, a decision that has encouraged foodservice operators to eliminate trans fats from foods and reformulate deep-fat frying oils in order to make them trans fat-free. This study evaluated performance, sensory, and nutrition characteristics of trans fat-free oils used to cook French fries during a 10-day controlled degradation session. Nutritional analyses and fatty acid profiles were conducted on the oils before degradation, and a sensory evaluation of fries cooked in different oils was conducted to determine liking of the fries. Results indicated a preference for French fries fried in canola oils, while the 0.05% low alpha-linolenic (ALA) soybean oil had the highest stability and lowest oil usage. All the low ALA oils in the study provided a healthy, inexpensive, and stable option for foodservice operators to consider when choosing trans fat-free oils; therefore, foodservice operators must determine which is more important-stability, usage, nutrition, or taste preference-when selecting the right oil for their operation.This study was funded by Cargill™, Inc.; however, the analysis and final results were in no way influenced by representatives from the company. A special thanks to Connie Tobin and Dan Lampert for their assistance and support in the study. The research team thanks Compusense (Guelph, Ontario, Canada) for the use of their sensory software.

Frying of potato chips in a blend of canola oil and palm olein: changes in levels of individual fatty acids and tocols

“…Increased stability has been mainly attributed to the modified ratio of mono‐ (MUFA) to polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) (Warner et al. , 1994; Chu & Kung, 1998; Hack et al. , 2009).…”

“…Blending of oils is a simpler way of modifying the fatty acid profile and improving the stability of frying oil. Increased stability has been mainly attributed to the modified ratio of mono-(MUFA) to polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) (Warner et al, 1994;Chu & Kung, 1998;Hack et al, 2009). The frying stability of oils blends has been studied using different oils in various proportions (Tyagi & Vasishtha, 1996;Man et al, 1999;Su & White, 2004;Kita & Lisinska, 2005;De Marco et al, 2007;.…”

Effects of Combining Antioxidants on the Oxidative Stability of Refined, Bleached and Deodorized Palm Olein during Continuous Deep Frying of Potato Chips

“…Sensory evaluation was employed to assess the effect of an antioxidant on the organoleptic quality of fried potato chips. Although somewhat subjective, sensory evaluation remains the ultimate measure of rancidity, as no combination of chemical or physical tests is currently capable of assessing the composite sensory attributes of food [17,10,8]. The sensory perception of the sensory panel members, in terms of overall acceptability and overall preference (%), to word the potato chips during accelerated storage is represented in Table 3.…”

“…Consequently, these changes reduce consumer acceptance of the final product. In this regard, a wide range of antioxidants, either synthetic or natural, are added to fats, oils, and foods containing fats to inhibit the development of off-flavorsarising from the oxidation of unsaturated fatty acids [5,[12][13][14][15][16][17]8].…”

See the Seal? Understanding Restrained Eaters’ Responses to Nutritional Messages on Food Packaging

“…The introduction of this category made an impressive achievement with estimated sales of $359 million in 1991 (Puzo, 1991). However, there appeared a problem in that the identification of trans fat, which would increase the ratio of total cholesterol to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, was not clearly mandated (Hack, Bordi, & Hessert, 2009;Stampfer et al, 1991). Considering the health implications, the FDA finally requested the labeling of trans fat content for all food products (FDA, 2004).…”