Page 40 - Food & Drink Magazine Sep-Oct 2020

PROCESSING TECH
Testing for frying perfection
The latest testo270 allows manufacturers to monitor and test cooking oil and make informed, efficient decisions about how long to use oil as well as when to replace it.
DEEP-FRYING is a fast and efficient way to cook food, and with the right equipment, can be a reliable, simple process for manufacturers. Using the latest monitoring and testing measures as part of a deep- frying line ensures a consistent, quality product.
Oil quality degrades through the cooking process. The temperature and frying time, food coating, moisture and oil composition all contribute to its degradation. Spent oil can cause product discolouration, increased oil retention, poor flavour, and health issues.
When oil’s chemical compounds are oxidised, polymerisation and hydrolysis occur. The number of polar compounds, including alcohols and free fatty acids, rise over time, degrading the oil.
Measuring the total polar compounds (TPM) is a
straightforward and useful method for determining the quality of cooking oil. It provides a clear indication of when it is time to discard old oil and replace it. It also helps avoid pre-emptively replacing oil, thereby saving money.
Cooking oil is not the most expensive resource by weight, but the volume used to fry foods and the large quantities needed for safe and effective operation can make costs add up quickly.
The testo270, from Testo, offers a simple and dependable method for assessing the quality of cooking oil. The display uses a traffic light colour-coding approach to make understanding the state of the oil as easy as possible. With very basic training, staff can safely use the instrument to test the TPM content of oil while it is heated and quickly clean it once finished. ✷
The testo270 shows when it is time for an oil change.
Steamy appetite for plant-based milks
Directly injecting steam to sterilise and dilute beverages is ideal for the burgeoning plant-based milk sector. HRS Heat Exchangers international sales & marketing director Matt Hale writes.
ACCORDING to reports, sales of vegan-friendly, plant-based milks have surged over the past two years. In response to this increased customer demand, HRS Heat Exchangers has added a new Direct Steam Injection System to its established range of pasteurisation and sterilisation systems.
The benefit of sterilising using direct steam injection is the speed of the process, with sterilisation temperatures of 100 to 145 degrees Celsius being reached in around a second; much quicker than the fastest heat exchanger systems.
For products such as plant milks, rapid heating prevents cooking of the product and formation of caramel-type compounds, which can darken the product or produce unwanted flavours.
Some products, such as oat milk, also benefit from the additional dilution with water which the steam injection provides. In most cases the water, which is added during the steam injection process, needs to be removed from the end product. This is normally achieved using flash evaporation to remove excess steam and help cool the product, but there is a danger that volatile aromatic compounds can be lost, which could have a negative impact on certain products, such as fruit juices. For this reason, not all products are suitable for steam injection.
For products where direct steam injection is desirable, the HRS DSI Series can inject food grade steam into liquid products, providing an instant
increase in the thermal process. The DSI Series of steam
injection modules for the pasteurisation and sterilisation of products such as plant milks, have been running successfully for a number of months. ✷
The New HRS DSI Series uses direct steam injection to increase the speed of sterilising products such as plant milk.
40 | Food&Drink business | September-October 2020 | www.foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au