Inhibitory effect of chitosan coating on oil absorption in French fries based on starch structure and morphology stability

The effect of chitosan (CS) coating on oil absorption, water migration, starch structure and morphology in French fries was evaluated. The penetrated surface oil, structure oil, total oil content, and a* of coated fries decreased, while the water content, L*, b*, and hardness significantly (P < 0.05) increased compared to uncoated samples. 1 % CS-coated fries had the lowest oil content, which decreased by 43.0 % compared to uncoated samples. CS-coated fries had higher free water, and lower T2 relaxation time, immobile and binding water than the control. CS coating reduced the pores on the fries' surface and the interaction between oil and the component of fries, which was observed by confocal laser scanning microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). As for starch morphology, the pores and cracks of starch granules in the coated samples reduced. As for the starch structure, the relative crystallinity, R1047/1022 respectively increased by 47.2 % and 2.35 times, and ΔH of CS-coated fries increased from 0 to 2.09 J/g, indicating that the long-range crystalline structure, short-range ordered structure, and hydrogen bonds between the double helices in starch increased. Therefore, CS coating reduced oil penetration into fries by reducing water migration and increasing starch ordered structure and morphological integrity.