Deep fat frying characteristics of chickpea flour suspensions

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum) (Bengal gram) flour suspensions are widely used in the preparation of oriental traditional snacks and sweets. We investigated the frying characteristics of small and large boondi, a traditional product made by deep fat frying the droplets of chickpea flour suspensions. The rate of water loss during frying was much higher than that of oil uptake. Towards the end of frying, the bulk densities of small and large boondis were similar and remained constant. The analysis of microstructure of the product indicated that there were large pores and vacuoles inside, whereas the outer surface remained fairly smooth with fewer smaller pores. The colour changes during frying were described in terms of tristimulus values (brightness, hue and chroma) and yellowness, of which brightness decreased markedly; the colour of the product changed from bright yellowish orange (raw batter) to dull orange (finished product).