Baking & Snack - May 2024 - 80

ucts need to be held back during the frying process or
can they be captured between two belts? Are there any
particular shape or " curl " requirements for the finished
items? Will the frying process create a lot of fines? Will
the products need drain time as they exit the fryer?
Padilla added that the answers will dictate the fryer's
internal configuration requirements. The system may
require a submerging and main conveyor. Another may
have paddles followed by an immersion belt or a submersion
conveyor with or without positioning flights.
Other systems like specially designed belts create contoured
snacks. Meanwhile, a free-fry section in the kettle's
infeed allows snacks to fall directly into the oil or
into an infeed belt to prevent products from dropping
into oil that may create product distortion. Snacks may
even require flipping while other processes require a
sediment removal conveyor to get rid of fines from the
bottom of the kettle.
He recommended that snack makers consider the
amount of heat required during the frying process. A
potato slice contains more than 90% water while some
starch pellets only have 8% to 12% water content with
many other snacks falling somewhere in-between. The
frying process varies for each of them.
WHETHER IT'S FOR PURE
FUN OR PERMISSIBLE
INDULGENCE, FRY DAY
IS EVERY DAY FOR MANY
SNACKING CONSUMERS.
Monitoring water content is critical because the higher
the product moisture content, the greater the heat
load on the system, said Doug Kozenski, sales manager,
process prepared, processing sales at Heat and Control.
" Heat load is a critical consideration when determinTop:
The latest in frying
technology now focuses on
creating extended production
runs with no degradation
in oil or product quality.
Moline Machinery
Bottom: A shallow fryer with
a flat bottom drains quickly,
then allows for fast cleaning
along with filtering and
recycling of the oil before
refilling the kettle.
Topos Mondial
ter captures the vaporized oil from developing a film on
nearby equipment and floors, reducing sanitation and
safety concerns.
Fried to order
To select the best frying option, manufacturers must understand
how a specific snack will react during the process.
James Padilla, Heat and Control's director of product
development and processing, suggested answering
key questions. For example, when do the snacks become
buoyant? Will the products expand or reduce from their
original sizes during the frying process? If the snacks
touch, will there be a negative impact on frying, resulting
in undercooked areas or marriages? Will the prod80
Baking & Snack May 2024 / www.bakingbusiness.com
ing what type of fryer to select, " he pointed out. " It is best
to collaborate with the fryer supplier to discuss the product
in detail, taking into consideration pre- or post-frying
characteristics and any nuances that may take place from
when the product enters the fryer to when it exits. "
To better control production, sensor technology has
improved for measuring temperature, oil level control and
flow applications, as well as for monitoring the fryer environment
of heat, moisture and corrosion during the boilout
process, said Daniel Luna, director of processing equipment
for PPM Technologies. All these sensors influence
quality, and temperature level controls can reduce waste.
" We have switched from troublesome float devices
and other older technologies to improved digital technologies,
both analog and fixed sensor, unaffected by
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