The effect of ultrasound pretreatment on oil absorption and quality of deep-fried chicken scnitzels

Although deep-fried products are attractive and consumed by individuals of all age groups due to their golden color, crispy texture, and unique flavor, they contain large amounts of oil, which affects their quality and fails to meet the demand of consumers to pursue a healthier diet. In this study, the effect of ultrasound pretreatment on the oil absorption and quality of deep-fried chicken schnitzels was investigated, and the experiments were carried out in 2 stages. In the first stage, chicken schnitzel samples were subjected to ultrasound treatment at different amplitudes (32, 48, 64, and 80%) and times (10, 20, and 30 minutes) and deep-fried at 180 °C. The fried samples were analyzed for dry matter, total fat, oil absorption, and frying yield. Ultrasound pretreatment affected the dry matter, total fat, oil absorption, and frying yield of deep-fried chicken schnitzels (p<0.05). While the non-ultrasound control group and pretreated schnitzel groups at 48 and 80% amplitude showed similar oil absorption values (p>0.05), ultrasound pretreatment at 32% and 64 amplitudes reduced oil absorption in schnitzel samples (p<0.05). The highest decrease was observed in the group (64/20) subjected to ultrasound pretreatment at 64% amplitude for 20 min as 53%. Based on the total fat and oil absorption results, in the second stage of the study, the control group and the schnitzel groups subjected to ultrasound at 32 and 64% amplitudes were analyzed for fat fraction, color, hardness, SEM, and sensory properties. Ultrasound pretreatment affected YÜY, PYY+YAY, a*, b*, hardness, flavor, oiliness, and overall acceptability scores of the deep-fried chicken schnitzels' (p<0.05). Ultrasound pretreatment before frying improved the hardness of the schnitzel groups and did not have a negative effect on the color. Different numbers of microscopic channels, including pores and cracks, were observed in the microstructure of the schnitzel groups subjected to ultrasound pretreatment, and they scored higher in terms of overall acceptability. These results show that ultrasound pretreatment at 32% and 64% amplitude for 10, 20, and 30 min can be used to reduce the total fat content and oil absorption, improve crispness and preserve sensory properties of chicken schnitzel samples. Keywords: Ultrasound pretreatment, Chicken scnitzel, Deep frying, Oil absorption, Quality attributes