Quality characteristics of battered and fried chicken: comparison of pressure frying and conventional frying.

The marinated and battered chicken leg meat and
breast meat were pressure fried and their physico-chemical
qualities were compared to the conventional fried product
(open pan deep fat frying). Shrinkage due to frying process
was significantly lesser in case of pressure fried leg meat
(PLM) and breast meat (PBM) as compared to products
prepared by conventional frying leg meat (CLM) and
breast meat (CBM). Also, juiciness of pressure fried
chicken products was superior (p≤0.05) than fried
products obtained by the conventional method. PLM and
PBM had lower fat content (p≤0.05) compared to
conventionally fried CLM and CBM. Lipid oxidation
was higher (p≤0.05) in conventional frying as compared
to pressure frying. Irrespective of the type of chicken
meat, conventionally fried meat required higher shear
force as compared to pressure fried products. Salmonella,
Staphylococcus aureus, Shigella and E. coli were not
detected. The study indicates the usefulness and superiority
of pressure frying in comparison to conventional deep fat
frying.