Water and Fat Transfer Properties of Polysaccharide Films on Fried Pastry Mix

This study investigated the use of edible films to reduce fat absorption in fried foods. The edible films studied were gellan gum, methyl cellulose and hydroxypropyl cellulose. All three films were found to reduce the fat absorption into the food by 50-91%; however, methyl cellulose reduced the fat more than other films. Gellan gum increased the water loss by about 100% while hydroxypropyl cellulose and methyl cellulose decreased the water loss by 30%. The fat and water diffusivities of the gellan gum film were increased with the increase in film thickness.