ABSTRACT
Deep frying is one of the oldest processes to dry, to cook and to formulate food products (Varela 1998; Gertz 2000): various roots and tubers (Gamble and Rice 1987; Baumann and Escher 1995; Vitrac et al. 2001, 2002), fruits (Diaz et al. 1999) and meat (Lisse and Raoult-Wack 1998). Its use has been extended to dry and roast coffee, to dry and structure oily products prior to pressing (Grewal 1996; Hounhouigan et al. 1997) and also enlarged to non-food applications, including the drying and formulation of timber (Baillères et al. 2001) and sludge (Silva, Rudolph, and Taranto 2005). Its success comes from its versatility and exibility at the industrial and household scale. Besides, it offers several advantages which are dif cult to reproduce with alternative technologies: very ef cient heat transfer, crispy texture associated with rapid drying, and tasteful fried products (Raoult-Wack et al. 2000; Pedreschi and Moyano 2005). However, frying has several limitations: (i) dif culty to orient
independently heat-and water-mediated phenomena that occur simultaneously during frying; and (ii) increased consumer demand for low-fat products.
