Scientists at the US Agriculture Research Service (ARS) are cooking up a new kind of french fry for health-conscious consumers who can not resist the fast-food favourite. Because the fries are made from rice flour mixtures, rather than potatoes, they absorb less fat during cooking. Rice is also hypoallergenic, nutritious and easily digested, and it stores well, the ARS comments.
According to the ARS, the fries are made with broken and immature/thin rice kernels, which fetch a lower price than regular whole rice. The method processes rice flour mixtures into fries with texture, cooking and other properties that closely mimic potato fries. Details of the research leading up to the process appear in the Journal of Food Science, 2001 (vol. 66 (4), pp. 610-613 and vol. 66 (8), pp. 1084-1088).
In tests, the rice fries generally absorbed 25-50 per cent less fat from oil during cooking than potato fries. They could also be made into a "functional food,", the ARS claims, since they can be fortified with vitamins, minerals, protein and other nutrients. The U.S. Department of Agriculture filed for a patent on the process. Now, the ARS researcher and collaborators with Rishellco, Inc., are consulting with U.S. rice processors on ways to commercialise the fries.
In related work, the researcher is experimenting with a whole-rice bread for individuals with celiac disease, an intolerance to the wheat protein gluten that affects one to two percent of the U.S. population.