JFS H: Health, Nutrition, and Food

Tastier and Healthier Alternatives to French Fries

CAIUS M. ROMMENS, ROSHANI SHAKYA, MARK HEAP, AND KRISTI FESSENDEN
ABSTRACT: The effect of both the origin and shape of potato cuts on fry quality was investigated in this study. Linear strips from the inner core of tubers were compared to those from outer tissues, both before and after processing, and strips from either specific tissues or whole peeled tubers were also evaluated against ring-shaped cuts. Both strips and rings had 0.7 cm sides and, in most cases, a volume of 4.9 cm3 . They were analyzed for moisture content, antioxidants, asparagine, and reducing sugars. The material was then blanched, dipped in 0.5% disodium acid pyrophosphate and 0.3% glucose, dried at 77 C, par-fried in soybean oil at 191 C, and finish-fried at 168 C. The fried product was analyzed for sensory characteristics and oil, salt, and acrylamide content. Our results showed that strips from the inner core absorbed 28% more oil and exhibited inferior sensory characteristics compared to strips from the outer parts. The extended drying and frying times needed to match the crispness and flavor of inner strips to those of regularly fried outer strips resulted in a further increased absorption of oil and, importantly, triggered a 163% increase in levels of the toxic Maillard reaction product acrylamide. Potato rings consisted of higher dry matter material, contained more antioxidants, and had a lower surface-to-volume ratio than the conventional linear strips. Upon processing, they also absorbed 22% less oil, contained 26% less salt, and displayed superior sensory properties. Thus, ring fries may represent an attractive alternative to French fries as processed staple food. Keywords: acrylamide, French fries, nutritional quality, oil absorption, processing

Determination of moisture, oil, and salt levels

Moisture levels were calculated by dividing the weight before freeze-drying by the weight after freeze-drying and multiplying this ratio by 100. Oil content was determined by homogenizing 1 g MS 20090895 Submitted 9/11/2009, Accepted 2/7/2010. Authors are finish-fried potato (total weight) with 2 mL dichloromethane uswith J. R. Simplot Co., Simplot Plant Sciences, 5369 West Irving St., ing a bullet blender (2 9 min). After centrifugation for 10 min at Boise, ID 83706, U.S.A. Direct inquiries to author Rommens (E-mail: 3300 rpm, extracts were filtered and then dried over anhydrous crommens@simplot.com). sodium sulfate. The oil percentage was calculated by multiplying
C 2010 Institute of Food Technologists R doi: 10.1111/j.1750-3841.2010.01588.x

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ach year, the potato industry converts billions of potato tubers into French fries. The crispness of this important convenience food depends in part on the starch content of the raw material (Kita 2002). Fry color, in contrast, is based on the amount of reducing sugars that accumulates during growth and storage (Iritani and Weller 1974). One of the principal tenets of quality control stipulates that the composition of tubers is influenced by genetic and environmental factors (Li and others 2008). For example, the glucose and fructose content in freshly harvested tubers often falls below 0.1 mg/g fresh weight (FW) but can increase to 8 mg/g FW or more on cold storage (Blenkinsop and others 2002; Matsuura-Endo and others 2006). The accumulated reducing sugars react with amino acids during heat processing and form dark Maillard products that lower the visual appeal of French fries. One Maillard product, acrylamide, also poses potential health issues because it displays neurotoxic activities (Lopachin 2005). Efforts to control color and acrylamide formation in fries by minimizing the variability between tubers have yielded some degree of success (Mackay 1996; Monti and Struik 1999; Matsuura-Endo and others 2006). Little has been done, however, to address the key heterogeneities within tubers, which appear inevitable and contribute to inconsistencies in food quality. Like other stem structures, tubers contain a central pith region with a diameter of 1.5 to 2.5 cm that has relatively large parenchyma cells. These cells accumulate more water and less starch than the compact cells of peripheral layers (Talburt and others 1987; Iranbakhsh and others 2007). Therefore, potato strips from the inner parts are expected to respond disparately to processing than strips from the outer tissue. Further, glucose and fructose concentrations may vary throughout the individual tuber. Many biotic and abiotic stresses trigger the accumulation of such reducing sugars at the

Introduction

apical and basal ends (Thompson and others 2008). The resulting concentration gradient causes local, uneven darkening during processing, generating French fries that often contain brown ends that are perceived as undesirable. In this study, we examined the quality of French fries that were produced from different parts of potato tubers. French fries from the inner cores of tubers were compared with those from outer tissues for sensory characteristics as well as for oil, acrylamide, and antioxidant content. We also evaluated the differences between conventionally produced linear fries and fries with a circular shape that only contained material from the outer tissues.

Materials and Methods

Processing
For each experiment, we selected about 20 tubers with similar shape and size and a weight of 0.3 to 0.4 kg per sample. Potato strips were cut from peeled Russet Burbank tubers with a grid of knife blades. Potato rings were generated by, first, cutting the peeled tubers into discs with a slicer that was set to 0.7 cm and, second, by cutting the discs with a custom-made double cylindrical knife. The diameters of the inner and outer blades were 3.0 and 4.4 cm, respectively. Standard procedures for French fry production consisted of a blanching step (9 min at 74 C); a dip in 0.5% disodium acid pyrophosphate (SAPP) and 0.3% glucose (45 s at 77 C); drying (6 min at 77 C), par-frying in soybean oil (45 s at 191 C), freezing (overnight at 80 C), and finish-frying step (3 min and 10 s at 168 C).

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the dried extract : total weight ratio by 100. Salt (NaCl) levels were Sensory assessment measured using Dip Insta-TestR sodium chloride test strips (LaMPar-fried strips or rings (0.7 kg/sample) were finish-fried, spread otte Company, Md., U.S.A.) according to the manufacturers recom- out on a tray, and evaluated after 3 min by a panel consisting of 8 mendations. members that had been screened for acuity and trained for quantitative descriptive analysis. The training program included a calMeasurement of asparagine and sugar levels ibration for color, crispness, mealiness, and flavor using multiple Asparagine and other amino acids were extracted by homog- reference standards (see, for instance, Meilgaard and others 2007). enizing 250 mg ground freeze-dried potato strips or rings with Color intensity was defined by using a scale from 1 (pale yellow) 5 mol sarcosine as an internal standard in 3.0 mL 0.03 M triethy- to 9 (dark brown). The 1 to 9 scales used for crispness, mealiness, lamine HCl buffer and adding (a) 150 L 85 mM potassium hex- and flavor ranged from limp to hard, smooth and mushy to coarse acyanoferrate trihydrate (K4 [Fe(CN)6 ].3H2 O), (b) 150 L 100 mM and grainy, and no detectable caramel flavor to high-caramel flazinc sulfate (ZnSO4 .7H2 O), and (c) 250 L 0.1 N NaOH with vor, respectively. The variations in color and texture were assessed 3.0 mL 0.03 M TEA buffer pH 7.0, vortexing the mixture after on a scale of 5 (fully uniform) to 9 (highly variable). Panelists had each addition. The extract was centrifuged for 15 min at 4 C at given informed consent to tests nonstandard foods; they evaluated 40000 rpm, and the supernatant was transferred to a new tube. The 5 to 10 fries per sample and 6 samples per day with > 15-min inpellet was resuspended in 5 mL nanopure water and centrifuged. tervals between samples. The samples were coded and evaluated Supernatants were pooled with the 1st tube, and the final volume in random order. All protocols were approved by the Simplot Plant was adjusted to 12.5 mL with water. The extracted free amino acids Sciences review board. were derivatized using the EZ:faast method according to the users manual from Phenomenex (Torrance, Calif., U.S.A.). Derivatized Calculation of surface-to-volume ratios (SVRs) samples were analyzed by liquid chromatography-mass spectromSVRs were calculated using software programs that are freely acetry (LC-MS) using an Agilent 1200 series high-performance liquid cessible at, for example, http://www.livephysics.com/tools/math/ chromatography (HPLC) system that was coupled to a 6300 series area-and-volume-calculator.html. ion trap (Agilent, Santa Clara, Calif., U.S.A.). Brukers quant analysis software was used for quantification. For HPLC, we used a 25.0 Statistical analysis 0.3 cm EZ:faast AAA-MS column, and the mobile phase was 10 mM Data are presented as the means of the results of 3 experiments, ammonium formate in water (A) and 10 mM ammonium formate and the error bars shown represent the standard error of the mean. in methanol 1 : 2, v/v (B), flow rate 0.25 min/mL with a gradient of Significance was determined using the Students 2-tailed t -test. 68% to 83% B in 13 min and 13 to 18 min 68% buffer B. Mass spectrometry was run in the positive mode with ESI and auto MSn. Results Sugars were extracted by shaking approximately 150 mg freezedried strips or rings in 1 mL 60% ethanol at 80 C for 1 h. The Quality differences between French fries from outer supernatant was transferred to a fresh tube, and the pellet was compared with inner potato strips reextracted with 1 mL ethanol for 30 min at 80 C. The supernatant Peeled Russet Burbank tubers were cut into strips with 0.7-cm volume was reduced in a Speedvac to 60 to 70 L. A known amount sides and lengths of 6 to 12 cm. The 4 innermost strips of each tuof ribose was added as an internal standard. Sugar analyses were ber were used as inner strips, whereas the 4 to 8 most periphperformed on an Agilent 1200 series HPLC system, which consisted eral strips represented the outer strips (Figure 1). The 2 groups of an autosampler, Zorbax carbohydrate column (0.46 15.0 cm), a of strips were weighed, freeze dried, and reweighed to determine solvent system of acetonitrile-water (75 : 25), and a refractive index their moisture content. Inner strips contained 81.91 1.73% moisdetector, at a flow rate of 1 mL/min. Sugars were quantified using ture, and the content of outer strips was 77.30 2.49% (Figure 2). Agilent ChemStation software with external calibration. To determine the effect of their different origins on fry quality, the strips were blanched, dried, and fried according to standard proceQuantification of phenolic antioxidants (chlorogenic dures (see Materials and Methods). A panel of 8 trained members acid and ascorbate) found that French fries from the outer strips were more uniform in Phenolic compounds were quantified by HPLC, as described color and texture than control fries from mixed batches of strips (Shakya and Navarre 2006). Briefly, tubers were frozen in liquid ni- (Table 1). However, fries from the inner strips appeared undertrogen and freeze dried, and samples were extracted with a 50% cooked because they were limp and too light in color. A more precise comparison of the quality of material from the methanol buffer. LC-MS analyses of the extracts were performed with an Agilent 1100 HPLC system that was equipped with a qua- various potato tissues was made by removing the apical and basal ternary pump, refrigerated autosampler and column heater, using ends of tubers to produce strips that were exactly 7 cm long. InDAD and MS ion trap detection. Typically, 5 L of sample were in- ner strips from the middle tuber parts had a higher moisture conjected into an Onyx column (Phenomenex) at 35 C and a flow rate tent than those from outer tissues (Figure 2). Upon processing, of 1 mL/min with a gradient elution of 0 to 1 min 100% buffer A they displayed inferior sensory properties, especially with respect (10 mM formic acid, pH 3.5, with NH4OH), 1 to 9 min 0% to 30% to crispness, mealiness, and flavor (Table 1). Collectively, our rebuffer B (100% methanol with 5 mM ammonium formate), 9 to sults demonstrate that the quality of French fries is compromised 10.5 min isocratic 30% buffer B, 10.5 to 14 min 35% to 65% buffer when strips from the inner parts of potato tubers are processed usB, 14 to 16 min 65% to 100% buffer B and 16 to 15.5 min isocratic ing standard methods. Processing variables for inner strips were optimized by extend100% C. For MS analysis, ESI in the negative mode was used. The source was operated using 350 C drying gas (N2 ) at 12 L/min, ing drying and frying times in 1-min increments. Sensory evalu55 psi nebulizer gas, and a source voltage with a scan range of 50 to ations of the resulting fries demonstrated that a 2-min extension 1000 m/z. Data analysis was performed using the Agilent Chemsta- of drying time, with a 2-min increase in time of frying, enhanced tion and ACD/MS Manager software programs (Advanced Chem- the color and crispness of inner fries to levels that matched those of outer fries that were prepared according to standard protocols istry Development Inc., Toronto, Canada).
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(Table 2). When applied to outer strips, the modified process produced dark and overcooked fries that were unacceptable for commercial use (data not shown). The French fries that were prepared using standard parameters were analyzed for water and oil content. Figure 3A shows that the moisture content of inner fries was 50.83 0.53%, whereas outer fries contained 44.53 1.07% moisture. Thus, potato strips lost approximately 31% of their water during drying and frying, which was in part replaced by oil. The inner fries absorbed more oil (12.5%) than outer fries (9.8%), especially when they were processed for longer times to enhance their sensory characteristics (12.8%) (Figure 3B). The above-described high moisture content for inner strips would be predicted to limit their acrylamide potential (Amrein and others 2006). However, an analysis of French fries that had been prepared using standard parameters did not confirm this hypothesis because inner fries contained 759 parts per billion (ppb) acrylamide, which was similar to that generated by outer fries (721 ppb) (Figure 4A). When frying procedures were adjusted to produce inner fries that had the same color and crispness as outer fries, we observed that inner fries accumulated 63% more acrylamide (1172 ppb) than similarly colored and crispy outer fries (Figure 4A). Further, biochemical analyses showed that strips for outer fries contained more ascorbate than inner strips (0.054 0.003 compared with 0.050 0.003 mg/g FW) (Figure 4B). They also accumulated more of the polyphenolic antioxidant chlorogenic acid (0.026 0.005 compared with 0.020 0.003 mg/g FW) (Figure 4B). Thus,

90
85 Moisture content 80 * *

75
70 65

60

In

Out

In

Out

Figure 1 --- Longitudinal (A) and latitudinal (B) diagram of Strips from Strips from cut a potato tuber. Areas shown in lighter gray shades conwhole tubers tubers tain more water and less dry matter than those in darker tones. The grid indicates a conventional knife system designed to produce potato strips. An inner strip is derived Figure 2 --- Moisture content of inner (In) and outer from the central part of the tuber, whereas an outer (Out) strips. Asterisks indicate statistically signicant differences between Out and In (P < 0.05). strip is from more peripheral parts. Table 1 --- Sensory evaluation of French fries from outer, inner, and mixed potato strips. Sensory rating Sample Out In Mix OutMiddle InMiddle Process Standard Standard Standard Standard Standard Color 7.6 0.52 6.1 0.35 7.2 0.46 7.1 0.35 5.4 0.46 Color variation 6.1 0.35 6.4 0.52 7.4 0.46 5.5 0.35 5.0 0.35 Crispness 6.5 0.53 4.4 0.52 5.8 0.46 6.8 0.52 4.1 0.52 Mealiness 6.3 0.46 5.3 0.46 5.3 0.46 6.1 0.52 5.1 0.52 Texture variation 5.3 0.35 5.7 0.35 6.6 0.46 5.2 0.46 5.7 0.46 Flavor 7.1 0.64 5.5 0.52 6.0 0.52 7.2 0.46 5.0 0.46

Table 2 --- Optimization of French fry processing using inner potato strips Sensory rating Sample Out (control) In In In In Processa Standard 8:00/4:10 8:00/5:10b 10:00/4:10 10:00/5:10 Color 7.0 0.38 6.9 0.38 7.1 0.38 7.7 0.49 7.9 0.38 Color variation 5.6 0.38 6.7 0.49 6.9 0.38 6.6 0.53 7.1 0.38 Crispness 5.7 0.49 4.7 0.49 6.4 0.53 5.9 0.38 6.7 0.49 Mealiness 6.0 0.00 4.9 0.38 5.6 0.53 5.0 0.0 5.6 0.53 Texture variation 5.4 0.53 6.1 0.38 5.7 0.49 6.4 0.53 6.4 0.53 Flavor 6.8 0.81 5.5 0.50 6.6 0.63 6.0 0.0 6.4 0.85

Ratings for inner (In) fries that are inferior to those for outer (Out) fries are shown in bold (P < 0.05). a Times indicated are for drying/frying. b Optimal times for the processing of inner strips.

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Data represent the average ( standard deviation) from 3 sessions. Ratings for outer (Out) and/or inner (In) fries that are superior to those for mixed (Mix) fries are indicated in bold, whereas inferior ratings are shown in italics (P < 0.05). Inner fries from the middle parts of tubers (InMiddle) with lower ratings than outer fries from the middle parts of tubers (OutMiddle) are also shown in italics.

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we conclude that outer fries are not only more appealing but also lated 385.1 13.3 ppb acrylamide (Figure 6C), which is 27.4% lower healthier than inner fries, because they contain less oil and acry- than such levels in outer fries (530.7 11.4 ppb). Inner fries that were processed to resemble outer fries in color and crispness conlamide and more antioxidants. tained the highest acrylamide levels (Figure 6C), whereas mixed fries had an intermediate level of 624 ppb (data not shown). Ring fry quality is superior to that of conventional We observed a greater difference in antioxidant levels between French fries ring strips and linear strips from the inner core, as measured earThe amount of oil absorption and acrylamide formation is based lier for outer compared with inner strips. The ring strips contained not only on whether potato strips are derived from inner or outer 21.1 2.6% more ascorbate and 52.9 14.3% more chlorogenic tissues but also on the surface-to-volume ratio (SVR) of the strips. Strips that have a lower SVR ratio are, therefore, expected to absorb acid than inner cores (Figure 6D). Recent studies have shown that less oil than strips that have the same volume but a higher SVR. these antioxidants are nearly refractory to standard boiling, frying, Based on these considerations, we developed new methods of cut- and baking methods (Rommens and others 2008). ting tubers to produce a healthier product. Tuber rings are one such example, in which we first cut the potato into 0.7-cm discs; the inner core and the outer skin/cortex were then removed with a double cylindrical knife (Figure 5A). Like linear strips, the rings had 0.7-cm sides. The surface area of a ring that had a volume of 4.9 cm3 , however, was 22.5 cm2 (SVR = 4.60), which was only 77.7% of the area of a typical 0.7 0.7 cm linear strip that had a volume of 4.9 cm3 (29.0 cm2 ) and an SVR of 5.9. The outer diameter of the rings was 4.4 cm (Figure 5A and 5B). The moisture content of the rings was lower than that of outer strips (Figure 5C), suggesting that rings captured the high drymatter parts of the potato more effectively. Rings were processed into golden, crisp fries that were crispier and more consistent in color than conventional fries (Figure 5D and Table 3). The oil content of ring fries was compared with that of the 2 groups of conventionally prepared, linear fries. As expected, the high solid content and low SVR of ring fries correlated with significantly reduced oil absorption: they contained only 80.0% of the oil that is present in French fries. This difference was particularly apparent when ring fries were compared with the linear fries from the inner core (Figure 5E). The low SVR of ring fries also reduced the salt levels per gram of fries by 25.8% (P < 0.05), a difference that was similar to the differential in SVRs between ring and linear fries (Figure 5F). This effect was noted despite maintaining the saltiness of fries, as determined by sensory evaluation (Figure 5G). Because acrylamide is primarily formed at the surface of potato strips (Taubert and others 2004), we assumed that the difference in SVR between strips and rings would be correlated with differences in their acrylamide forming potential. A measurement of the amounts of acrylamide precursors suggested even greater differences because rings contained the same amount of reducing sugars but 18.4% less asparagine than strips (Figure 6A and 6B). Confirming these expectations, we found that ring fries accumu-

Product recovery
The cost of ring fry production is based, in part, on the percentage of raw material that is turned into rings (the recovery rate). This rate depends on the shape, especially the diameter, of tubers (Figure 7). Tubers that have a diameter below approximately 4.6 cm are generally not considered for conventional French fry processing and are also too narrow for the production of ring fries. Such tubers should be used for alternative applications, such as hash browns and dehydrated potato flakes. A minimum diameter of 4.6 cm

A
1600 1400 Acrylamide (ppb) 1200 *

B
0.1 Anoxidants (mg/g FW) In Out In 0.08 0.06 0.04 0.02 0 In Out

1000
800 600 400

200
0 Standard Processing opmized for inner strips processing

Figure 4 --- Biochemical analysis of strips and fries from various parts of potato tubers. (A) Processing-induced acrylamide levels, whereby the asterisk indicates a statistically signicant difference (P < 0.05) between inner fries that were prepared according to a modied process (longer drying and frying time) compared with fries that had been processed according to the standard process, and (B) amounts of ascorbate (black bars) and chlorogenic acid (gray) in strips.

A
Moisture content

60 55

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12
Oil content (%-FW) 10 8 6 4 2 0 *

50 45 40 35 30 * *

In

Out

Standard Processing

In Processing Opmized for Inner Fries

In

Out

In Processing opmized for inner strips

Standard processing

Figure 3 --- Comparison of inner (In) and outer (Out) French fries. (A) Moisture content. Asterisks indicate statistically signicant differences (P < 0.05) between inner fries that were prepared according to a standard process compared with outer fries that were processed in the same manner and inner fries that were dried and fried for extended periods of time. (B) Oil content of French fries from inner and outer parts of potato tubers. The asterisk indicates a statistically signicant difference (P < 0.05) between outer fries that were prepared according to a standard process compared with the inner fries, regardless of how they had been processed.

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potentiates a cache of 8 to 12 discs/tuber, wherein each disc yields a single ring. The resulting rings represent 45% of the total tuber material, designating the remaining 55% of the tuber (basal and apical caps, the skin and cortex, and the inner core) for by-products. Theoretically, discs that have a diameter of 5.6 cm (tubers at least 6.0 cm) can be used to produce 2 concentric rings that have inner diameters of 3.0 and 4.4 cm. The recovery rate for ring fries from such medium-sized tubers reaches as high as 61.5% (Figure 7). The most efficient discs have a diameter of 7.6 cm; these discs can yield 3 concentric rings and support recovery rates of about 70%. The inner part of the potato tuber, the watery core, contained the same amount of free amino acids as the outer tissues on a freshweight basis. Thus, these tissues harbored more free amino acids per gram dry weight (DW) (Figure 8). There was an even greater disparity between inner and outer tissues with regard to protein levels (Figure 8). Therefore, we propose using the inner parts of tubers for the production of dehydrated mashed potato flakes that contain higher amounts of free amino acids and protein than flakes from whole peeled tubers.

Discussion

e have shown that inconsistencies in the color, texture, and taste of French fries are partly due to structural differences within the tuber. The high moisture content of potato strips from the inner tissues delays the cooking process of these strips. Thus, the application of a standard frying process for strips from both the inner and outer parts of the potato produced golden-colored and tasty, but undercooked, fries. The longer drying and frying times that were needed to enhance the sensory characteristics of inner fries resulted in overcooked outer fries that were dry and brown. In

Figure 5 --- Ring strips. (A) Generation of rings through slicing and cutting, (B) 0.7 0.7 cm potato rings with an inner diameter of 3.0 cm, (C) moisture content (the asterisk indicates a statistically signicant difference [P < 0.05] between ring and outer fries compared with inner fries), (D) ring fries, (E) oil content of ring fries compared with linear fries (the asterisk indicates a statistically signicant difference [P < 0.05] between outer and ring fries compared with inner fries), (F) salt content of ring and linear fries, and (G) salt perception as determined by a sensory panel.

C
70 Moisture content (%-FW) 60

50
* 40 30 20 10 0 Ring

Out

In

E
14 12 Oil content (%-FW) 10 8 6 * Salt (mg/g) *

F
6.0 5.0 4.0 3.0 2.0 1.0 * Salness

G
7
6 5 4 3 2 1 Mixed Ring

4
2 0

In

Out

Ring

0.0

Mixed

Ring

Table 3 --- Sensory assessment of conventional and ring fries. Sensory rating Sample Conventional Ring fries Process Standard Standard Color 6.5 0.35 7.0 0.46 Color variation 6.5 0.52 5.5 0.52 Crispness 5.0 0.35 6.4 0.55 Mealiness 5.3 0.41 5.8 0.41 Texture variation 5.7 0.52 5.0 0.46 Flavor 6.5 0.55 6.8 0.55

Ratings for ring fries that are superior to those for conventional fries are indicated in bold (P < 0.05).

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addition to differences in sensory properties, fries from outer tissues absorbed less vegetable oil, accumulated less acrylamide, and contained more antioxidants than those from inner parts. Thus, the exclusive use of strips from the outer potato produces tastier and healthier French fries. A further improvement was achieved by not only excluding the inner core of the potato but also lowering the SVR of the material that is used to produce fries. In the example described herein, tubers were sliced into 0.7-cm discs, and the discs were cut with a double cylindrical knife to generate potato rings (commercial applications may be different). The SVR of potato rings was 77.7% of that of potato strips. The resulting ring fries contained less oil and acrylamide than fries from the outer tuber, and they also contained less salt. Given their sensory and health benefits, ring fries might be perceived as a welcome alternative to linear fries, which became popular more than 5 decades ago. The effect of a lowered SVR on reduced acrylamide formation confirms the results of a study of potato chips that have a diameter of 3.0 cm (Taubert and others 2004). This study demonstrated that an increase in the thickness of chips from 0.3 to 1.5 cm lowered the amount of acrylamide from 2000 to 1300 ppb. In this study, however, the change in the shape of chips would have dramatically reduced sensory properties, especially crispness. Thus, 1.5-cm-thick chips are of academic interest only. An average daily intake of 78 gram fries (Fulgoni and others 2009) is associated with an exposure to 16.8 g acrylamide, which represents 42% of the average total dietary intake of this toxin in Europe and North America (Dybing and others 2005; Mucci and Wilson 2008). The transition to ring fries would lower the dietary acrylamide intake by 10 g without negatively affecting texture or taste. A smaller improvement in nutritional value was accomplished through a 26% reduction in salt content and a 29% increase in antioxidants (ascorbate and chlorogenic acid) of fries. There is an economic incentive to limit the amount of byproducts that is generated during the production of ring fries. It can, therefore, be most effective to produce ring fries in a processing plant that is also designed to make French fries. For example, a conventional sorting system can be used to segregate the 20% of tubers that have an optimal diameter of 7.6 cm for ring fry production in an independent production line. In that case, recovery rates would be up to 70%. This percentage approaches the optimal recovery rates for conventional French fries, which is 70% to 80% if blemish-free raw material is used (Hung and Rezania 2006). But even for French fries, more than 50% of tubers can be lost during the peeling and trimming process (Hung and Rezania 2006). Process efficiencies can be further enhanced by using potato varieties that have unusually narrow pith regions, such as Innovator, which has an inner core diameter of only 1.3 to 1.8 cm. Tubers of this variety could be used to make an additional ring per disc. Additional

A
4.5 4.0 3.5 3.0 2.5 2.0 1.5 1.0 0.5 0
In Asparagine (mg/g FW)

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Reducing sugars (mg/100 g FW) 200 175 150 125 100 75 50

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0 In Ring

Ring

C
1000 Acrylamide (ppb) 800 600 400 200

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0.1 Anoxidants (mg/g FW) Ring Out In 0.08 0.06 0.04 0.02 0 In Ring

Figure 6 --- Biochemical analysis of potato rings and ring fries. (A) Asparagine levels of inner strips compared with ring strips, (B) amounts of glucose (gray bars) and fructose (black) in inner strips compared with potato rings, (C) accumulated acrylamide levels in inner fries and ring fries, and (D) amounts of ascorbate (gray bars) and chlorogenic acid (black) in rings and strips. An asterisk indicates a statistically signicant difference (P < 0.05).
80 70

Percentage of usable ssue

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200 180 160 140

* 155 117.6

mg/g DW

10 0

120 100 80 60 40

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50

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80 mm-diameter

one two three ring/disc rings/disc rings/disc

14.71 Figure 7 --- Calculated average recovery rate for ring strips 10.02 20 from Russet Burbank potato tubers with a specied minimum diameter. Tubers that have a diameter below 0 approximately 4.6 cm cannot be used for the rings deIn Out scribed in this study. In the calculations, we assumed that the removed tuber ends and skin/cortex regions represented 20% of the tuber volume for small tubers Figure 8 --- Total free amino acids (black bars) and protein (gray) content of inner and outer tuber tissues. (4.6 cm) and 15% for large tubers (7.8 cm dia).
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efforts to improve on ring processing might result in a gradual increase in recovery rates. The tuber parts that are peripheral to the rings amount to 20% to 30% of the raw material and consist primarily of the cortex, periderm, and skin. These parts are particularly rich in dietary fibers and antioxidants (Oreopoulou and Tzia 2007) but can contain small amounts of glycoalkaloids, pesticide residues, and remnants of the sprout inhibitor chloropropham (Conte and others 1995; Soliman 2001; M ader and others 2009). Possible applications of these byproducts include uses as animal feed and fermentation for the production of bioethanol (Natu and others 1991). The inner tissues of potato tubers are most suitable for dehydration. Their relatively high protein and amino acid content (on a dry-weight basis) increases the nutritional value of the product. Some of the potato by-product material can also be used for new applications. For instance, potatoes can be fermented to produce xanthan gum, a stabilizer and thickener that is used in the paint and chemical industry, or polylactic acid, which is used in nonpetroleum-based plastics (Bilanovic and others 2006). Our findings provide justification for a partial replacement of French fries with ring fries. Not only are ring fries healthier and tastier than conventional French fries, but they also have a new and unexpected shape that may be perceived as desirable. By carefully sorting and processing optimally sized tubers, the production cost for ring fries can approach that of French fries.
Blenkinsop RW, Copp LJ, Yada RY, Marangoni AG. 2002. Changes in compositional parameters of tubers of potato (Solanum tuberosum) during low-temperature storage and their relationship to chip processing quality. J Agric Food Chem 50:4545 53. Conte E, Imbroglini G, Bertolini P, Camoni I. 1995. Presence of sprout inhibitor residues in potatoes in relation to application techniques. J Agric Food Chem 43:29857. Dybing E, Farmer PB, Andersen M, Fennell TR, Lalljie SP, Muller DJ, Olin S, Petersen BJ, Schlatter J, Scholz G, Scimeca JA, Slimani N, T ornqvist M, Tuijtelaars S, Verger P. 2005. Human exposure and internal dose assessments of acrylamide in food. Food Chem Toxicol 43:365410. Fulgoni VL, Keast DR, Slavin JL, MacDonald CM, Ramesh M. 2009. Nutritional contribution of white potatoes, French fries, and sweet potatoes in the diets of U.S. adults: NHANES 2003-2006. J Am Diet Assoc 109:A28. Hung YT, Rezania S. 2006. Potato waste water treatment. In: Wang LK, Hung YT, Lo HH, Yapijakis C, editors. Waste treatment in the food processing industry. p 193254. Iranbakhsh A, Ebadi M, Khaniki GB. 2007. The ontogenetic trends of microtuber formation in potato (Solanum tuberosum L). Pak J Biol Sci 10:84351. Iritani WM, Weller L. 1974. Objective measurement of French fry color. Am J Pot Res 51:1703. Kita A. 2002. The influence of potato chemical composition on crisp texture. Food Chem 76:1739. Li L, Paulo MJ, Strahwald J, Lubeck J, Hofferbert HR, Tacke E, Junghans H, Wunder J, Draffehn A, van Eeuwijk F, Gebhardt C. 2008. Natural DNA variation at candidate loci is associated with potato chip color, tuber starch content, yield and starch yield. Theor Appl Genet 116:116781. LoPachin RM. 2005. Acrylamide neurotoxicity: neurological, morhological and molecular endpoints in animal models. Adv Exp Med Biol 561:21 37. Mackay GR. 1996. An agenda for future potato research. Potato Res 39:38794. M ader J, Rawel H, Kroh LW. 2009. Composition of phenolic compounds and glycoalkaloids alpha-solanine and alpha-chaconine during commercial potato processing. J Agric Food Chem 57:62927. Matsuura-Endo C, Ohara-Takada A, Chuda Y, Ono H, Yada H, Yoshida M, Kobayashi A, Tsuda S, Takigawa S, Noda T, Yamauchi H, Mori M. 2006. Effects of storage temperature on the contents of sugars and free amino acids in tubers from different potato cultivars and acrylamide in chips. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem 70:1173 80. Meilgaard MC, Civille GV, Carr BT. 2007. Sensory evaluation techniques. Boca Raton, Fla.: CRC Press. p 21353. Monti L, Struik PC. 1999. Recent developments in potato research: scientific highlights of the EAPR conference in Sorrento, Italy, May 1999. Potato Res 42:381 95. Mucci LA, Wilson KM. 2008. Acrylamide intake through diet and human cancer risk. J Agric Food Chem 56:60139. Natu RB, Mazza G, Jadhav SJ. 1991. Waste utilization. In: Salunke DK, Kadam SS, Jadhav SJ, editors. Potato: production, processing, and products. Boca Raton, Fla.: CRC Press. p 175201. Oreopoulou V, Tzia C. 2007. Utilization of plant by-products for the recovery of proteins, dietary fibers, antioxidants, and colorants. In: Oreopoulou V, Russ W, editors. Utilization of by-products and treatment of waste in the food industry. New York: Springer. p 209232. Rommens CM, Richael CM, Yan H, Navarre DA, Ye J, Krucker M, Swords K. 2008. Engineered native pathways for high kaempferol and caffeoylquinate production in potato. Plant Biotechnol J 6:87086. Shakya R, Navarre DA. 2006. Rapid screening of ascorbic acid, glycoalkaloids, and phenolics in potato using high-performance liquid chromatography. J Agric Food Chem 54:525360. Soliman KM. 2001. Changes in concentration of pesticide residues in potatoes during washing and home preparation. Food Chem Toxicol 39:88791. Talburt WF, Schwimmer S, Burr HK. 1987. Structure and chemical composition of the potato tuber. In: Talburt WT, Smith O, editors. Potato processing. 4th ed. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold Co. Taubert D, Harlfinger S, Henkes L, Berkels R, Sch omig E. 2004. Influence of processing parameters on acrylamide formation during frying of potatoes. J Agric Food Chem 52:27359. Thompson AL, Love SL, Sowokinos JR, Thornton MK, Shock CC. 2008. Review of the sugar end disorder in potato. Am J Pot Res 85:37586.

Conclusions

e demonstrated that fries from outer potato strips were crispier and tastier than those from inner strips. They also absorbed less fat, formed less acrylamide, and contained more antioxidants. Furthermore, the outer fries had a more consistent and uniform golden color and crispness compared to fries from entire peeled tubers. We further improved fry quality by using circular rather than linear tuber cuts. The resulting ring fries were generated from the outer parts of tubers and had a low surface-to-volume ratio. Ring fries shared excellent sensory properties with outer fries while absorbing less fat and accumulating less acrylamide.

Acknowledgments
Dr. Pradeep Shrestha, Josh Sutherland, and the Plant Sciences Sensory Panel are acknowledged for excellent technical assistance. This study was financially supported by J. R. Simplot Co.

References
Amrein TM, Limacher A, Conde-Petit B, Amado R, Escher F. 2006. Influence of thermal processing conditions on acrylamide generation and browning in a potato model system. J Agric Food Chem 54:59106. Bilanovic D, Malloy S, Remeta P, inventors; Bemidji State Univ. Foundation, assignee. 2006. Solid or semi-solid fermentation of xanthan on potato or potato waste. U.S. Patent Application nr 11/598,907.

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H: Health, Nutrition, & Food