ABSTRACT Fish skins intended for deep-fat-fried snack applications were evaluated with respect to oil uptake, water loss, puffing behavior, color development, texture, and microstructural evolution during frying at 180°C. Tilapia skin exhibited substantially greater thickness than barramundi skin in both raw samples (1.3 vs. 0.1 mm) and fried products, leading to distinct frying behaviors. Based on moisture content, water activity, oil content, and puffing behavior, the preferred frying times were determined as 6 min for tilapia skin and 4 min for barramundi skin. At these endpoints, fried tilapia and barramundi skins had moisture contents of 2.42% and 1.98%, oil contents of 47.64% and 47.84%, and water activity values of 0.34 and 0.35, respectively. Tilapia skin achieved a much higher puffing ratio than barramundi skin (292.37% vs. 124.76%), while the breaking force was not significantly different between the two products. First-order kinetic models adequately described moisture loss and oil uptake during frying, with higher rate constants observed for barramundi skin, indicating faster dehydration and oil absorption due to its thinner structure. SEM observations showed that tilapia skin formed a more expanded and uniform porous structure, whereas barramundi skin developed smaller and more irregular voids. Overall, these results indicate that intrinsic skin thickness and microstructure are key factors controlling mass transfer, oil retention, puffing behavior, and the quality attributes of fried fish-skin snacks.
Wang et al. (Mon,) studied this question.
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: