Their work may eventually propel the french fry's already lasting and celebrated career into a golden age of perfection. Strong economic and social pressures lurk behind the quest for the scientific secrets of the french fry. Fried food production is an international, multibillion dollar industry. Now he runs a New Jersey-based consulting company that feeds its fried food research results directly into the industry's hungry hands. Health is one major concern.
Oil gives fried foods their smooth flavors and pleasing textures.
But as much as 20 percent of a fry's calories come in the form of fat, and a potato chip is more than 30 percent fat. Still, it's the fat that makes them taste good, Blumenthal says, and that means they sell. Research into fried foods could inspire engineers to create new fryer designs or techniques that maintain flavor but reduce fat. For a population plagued by diet-related health problems, such as heart disease and diabetes, this may be just the kind of science our lives depend on. And industries haven't overlooked the profits they could stand to gain by developing a lower-fat fry.