Households may perk up at this wonder device that allows you to reuse oil, again and again.

 

A Bengaluru-based dairy technologist has come out with an innovative frying device with the help of technology that allows the oil to be reused 50 times without an adverse health impact.

 

Titled ‘Micro-controller based sub-baric thermal processor for manufacture of fried and soaked dairy products’, the device provides for frying in vacuum to prevent oxidation. Mahesh Kumar G., who is also head of the Department of Dairy Engineering in the Dairy Science College in the Karnataka Veterinary and Animal and Fisheries Sciences University, has developed this device as part of his Ph.D. thesis submitted to the National Dairy Research Institute in Karnal.

 

The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has declared his work as the best Ph.D. thesis in the country for 2015-16, in the category of processing group.

 

The 49-year-old’s research goes beyond the multiple use of frying oil as it tackles various fundamental issues associated with it. Explaining the chemical reactions involved in the process of frying, he says the heating temperature should not cross 120 degrees centigrade while frying any of the dishes as that may result in degradation of oil and release of various unhealthy components such as acrylamide, which has carcinogenic and neurotoxic properties.

 

What has caused concern among the scientific community is that frying temperatures in an average Indian kitchen and commercial kitchens generally cross 150C.

 

“In the conventional method, water can be removed through frying only at 100C. However, through this device, it is possible to remove water at 45C itself,” Mr. Kumar notes.

 

Opting for vacuum is to prevent air during the process of frying, as oxidation needs air.

 

The device has a tray at the bottom for placing the frying oil and another tray above it for keeping the food items to be fried. After placing them in their slots, the doors are closed so that the air is removed to create a vacuum, he explains. Later, the process of heating the oil and tilting the top tray to place the food items in the oil will take place automatically, Mr. Kumar says.

 

The oxidation process that takes place when the frying temperatures exceed the limit also leads to creation of transfats which may affect the health of the heart, he says. In fact, disposal of re-used oil has become a cause for concern as several roadside eateries buy such reused oil from big industries at throwaway prices for their food preparations,” he says.

 

Another benefit is that the device reduces the oil uptake (consumption of oil) by about 40% when compared with the conventional frying method.

 

An experiment he conducted with frying of gulab jamuns using this device also showed that they soak up sugar solution in just around 10 minutes as against the conventional method of soaking time of a few hours.

 

Experts believe that Mr. Kumar’s innovation can change the processing scenario due to the savings in terms of reuse of oil, and health benefits.

 

Already, there are several enquiries for this device from various companies, including public laboratories and the corporate sector, says Mr. Kumar, who hails from an agricultural family in Tiptur of Tumakuru district.

 

He has only developed a technology for manufacture of such a device, and companies or entrepreneurs can use the technology for mass production.

 

The experimental development of the device, which is more suitable for industrial use due to the large capacity for frying, has cost him about ?8.5 lakh. “However, I am confident that it is possible to reduce the cost considerable through mass production,” he says, adding that a smaller device can also be developed to suit domestic purposes.

 

The industry too has warmed up to his innovation as the F1rst, a business associate of Swiss-based organisation GIRACT, has honoured him with the Best Ph.D. thesis award.

 

As part of this award, Nestle Research and Tata Trusts have given him a total cash prize of ?2.5 lakh.