How to process fried foods

Fried food processing is a common food processing method. By frying food in hot oil, a crispy crust is formed on the surface while the inside maintains a fresh and tender taste. The following introduces the detailed process, key control points and precautions of fried food processing:

Raw material selection and processing: Select fresh, non-spoiled ingredients, such as meat, vegetables, and pasta products. Meat needs to remove fascia and blood, and cut into appropriate sizes; vegetables need to be washed, peeled, sliced or diced; pasta products need to make dough or batter according to the recipe. For example, to make fried chicken legs, fresh chicken legs need to be selected and cut a few times for easy flavoring; to make French fries, potatoes with high starch content need to be selected, cut into strips of uniform thickness, soaked in clean water to remove the surface starch, and then blanched until 70% to 80% cooked, and then removed and drained.

Marinating and seasoning: marinate and season the raw materials according to the taste requirements of the product. Salt, sugar, soy sauce, cooking wine, spices and other seasonings can be added. The marinating time depends on the type and size of the raw materials. Generally, meat is marinated for 2-4 hours, and vegetables are marinated for about 30 minutes. For example, when marinating fried chicken wings, you can add light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, salt, sugar, pepper, cumin powder and other seasonings, stir evenly and marinate for more than 2 hours to allow the chicken wings to fully absorb the flavor of the seasoning.

Coating or battering: This step can form a crispy shell on the surface of fried foods. Common coatings include flour, starch, bread crumbs, etc.; battering is a paste made from flour, starch, water, eggs, etc. For example, to make fried fish fillets, first coat the fish fillets with a thin layer of flour, then dip them in egg liquid, and finally coat them with bread crumbs; to make fried crispy meat, flour, starch, eggs, water, salt, pepper powder, etc. can be mixed into batter, and the cut pork belly strips can be put into the batter and evenly coated with batter.

Frying equipment preparation: Choose suitable frying equipment, such as deep fryers, deep fryers, etc. Before use, check whether the equipment is operating normally, clean the fryer, and add an appropriate amount of cooking oil. Generally, the oil level should reach 1/3 - 1/2 of the fryer. Common cooking oils include soybean oil, rapeseed oil, peanut oil, etc. Different oils have different flavors and smoke points, and need to be selected according to product requirements.

Frying operation: Heat the oil to the appropriate temperature. The general frying temperature is between 150 ℃ and 190 ℃. If the temperature is too low, the food will absorb too much oil and become greasy; The temperature is too high, and the surface of the food is prone to burning, but the inside is not fully cooked. Put the ingredients coated with flour or batter into the oil pan, being careful not to squeeze them too full, so as not to affect the uniformity of the oil temperature and the frying effect of the food. During the frying process, it is necessary to flip the food in a timely manner to ensure even heating. The frying time depends on the type and size of the food. Generally, small items such as French fries are fried for 3-5 minutes, while large items such as whole chicken are fried for 15-20 minutes until the surface of the food is golden and crispy, and the inside is fully cooked.

Drain and Cool: Use a strainer or strainer to remove fried foods and place them on a drain rack to drain excess oil. The oil extraction time is generally 3-5 minutes. When the surface of the food no longer drips oil, it can be placed on a drying rack for natural cooling to prevent the internal heat of the food from softening the surface.

Packaging and Storage: Fried foods can be packaged according to product requirements after cooling, such as using plastic bags, paper boxes, and other packaging materials. For fried foods that require long-term preservation, vacuum packaging or nitrogen packaging can be used to extend their shelf life. Fried foods should be stored in a cool, dry, and well ventilated place, avoiding direct sunlight and high temperature and humidity to prevent food spoilage and oil rancidity.