I’ve previously related my own tale of woe over microwaving raw, dry carrots. And I’m sure many of you out there have similar stories you could tell. You need moisture to microwave. But now, microwave frying may be a reality…
A test batch of French Fries, cooked using Takhar’s team’s microwave method…
We all know what happens when you try to microwave an egg in the shell (see photo, top of page). And many of us have had similar disappointments when trying to cook certain foods in the mic for the first time.
And I, for one, have longed for a faster, easier way to prepare ‘baked’ French Fries, wings and other crispy delicacies than my trusty Breville Countertop convection oven.
Science brings hope…
Imagine truly healthier fries – and other traditionally deep-fried foods – thanks to a new system worked out by researchers from the College of Agricultural, Consumer & Environmental Sciences (ACES) at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana.
“Consumers want healthy foods. But at the time of purchase, their cravings often take over. High oil content adds flavor, but it also contains a lot of energy and calories. My research team studies frying with the aim of obtaining lower fat content without significant differences in taste and texture,” research team leader Pawan Singh Takhar said in a news release.
Combining microwaving and frying
Takhar’s team is proposing a new device which combines frying and microwaving to produce the end product he envisions.
The challenge is to keep the oil from entering the food during and after the cooking process. It should only be in contact when it’s time to crisp the food, he explains:
“Think about a straw in a drink. If you push air into the straw, it creates positive pressure and any liquid will be pushed out. But if you suck on the straw, the liquid moves upward. Now imagine food materials have lots of tiny straws. When there is positive pressure, the oil stays out. But if there is negative pressure, the oil starts moving in.”
Up to 90 percent of frying happens under negative pressure, so there is continuous suction potential. The goal is to keep the pressure positive longer, and shorten the duration of negative pressure to prevent oil from entering the food.
Combining two technologies
Takhar says the solution is in combining conventional and microwave coking techniques in the same device.
“To obtain a crispy texture and taste, you [also] need conventional heating. Therefore, we propose combining the two approaches in the same unit. Conventional heating maintains the crispiness, while microwave heating lowers the oil intake,” Takhar says.
Easier said than done…
Retrofitting commercial restaurant frying equipment is a relatively simple process of adding micro-wave generators to the existing stations. But implementing his team’s frying solution at home is another matter. However, based on his findings, separate combination devices may eventually be available that are outwardly similar to conventional fryers, but with microwave generators built in.
My take
So… We’re not likely to have a microwave frying attachment for our conventional ovens – or a con-ventional heating attachment for our existing microwaves – any time soon.
But as Alexandre Dumas advised in the closing lines of his monumental adventure story, The Count of Monte Cristo: “All human wisdom is contained in these two words – Wait and Hope…”
Maggie J.