Textural, Color Kinetics, and Heat and Mass Transfer Modeling During Deep Fat Frying of Chhena Jhili

Chhena jhili is a deep fat fried product prepared from the mixture of Chhena, refined wheat flour and sugar. The effect of frying temperature (120–140 C ) and frying time (3–20 min) on texture and color were investigated. The kinetics of texture and color followed the zero order kinetics for hardness, firmness, and L value whereas the stiffness and color change followed a first order kinetics. Activation energy for both texture and color falls in the range of 35.11–82.04 and 32.59–38.46 kJ/mol, respectively. Mathematical model was developed for heat and mass transfer during deep fat frying of Chhena jhili. The fat uptake during the deep fat frying is explained by the first order kinetic model. The convective heat transfer coefficients determined by transient heat transfer equation is 69.80–103.18 W/m 2 K in the temperatures range of 125–145C. The moisture transfer coefficient was increased with increase in temperature and was ranged from to 2.848 ×   10 − 5to 7.543 ×   10 − 5m/s. Practical Applications This study focuses on basic information on fryer and oil selection for frying. Effect of frying temperatures and frying time on product quality was analyzed. It provides overview of fryer design on the basis of the type of product to be fried. Frying time is longer at lower temperatures and frying at lower temperatures results in lighter color, and increased oil absorption. High‐temperature frying leads to thinner crusts and less oil absorption.