Why does fryer oil foam

When frying your fish and chips, foaming oil can be a problem. That frothy type foam that sometimes builds upon the surface of frying oil not only looks unpleasant but can be a symptom of poor oil management or even oil contamination. Foaming is caused by oil degradation or contamination, which is often the result of frying with oil on too high a temperature, overusing the oil or frying with poor quality oil that contains impurities.

Oil foaming can be caused by any of these factors and is often a combination of more than one issue. When frying with oil, some foaming is likely.

The moisture in food is heated when it is placed into frying oil, and the resulting steam naturally rises to the surface.

The key to knowing when they are done is that they will all float and stay on the surface of the oil. A traditional stir fry uses very little oil, which makes it a pretty healthy cooking method. So to prevent food from sticking, steel or iron woks need to be well-seasoned. To maintain the proper oil temperature, use a clip-on deep-fry thermometer and keep close watch.

Fry 0. Fresh pasta takes considerably less time to cook than dried, usually 1 to 3. For cooking, you. It is possible to make cookies without baking soda or baking powder, but the. You do need oil to cook your skillet burger. Some preferred to use butter. I have found this question to be one of the most difficult to get an answer to. I share your dilemma. The clue in your question, often ignored, is that you have been using your oil "for some time now".

I agree it does not occur with new oil. Replacing it will clearly solve your problem but does not explain The best I can offer is that the molecular structure of the oil must alter with use, perhaps combining with water. Oil is hydrophobic and works by driving water out of the food. This is observed by foaming even with new oil but to a lesser extent. Why used oil should foam more readily and take longer to cook food remains a mystery to me, But it does!

Like you, my much used oil appears clean and odorless as I never use it for frying crumbed, breaded or flour-dredged food. I am not easily persuaded that it may be harmful to use either. Regarding Coconut oil: I decided to give this a try in my cheapie fryer, because I had done some research into the "least foaming" oil; the longest lasting oil for regular draining and reuse , and the supposedly healthiest oil to use anyway.

What I discovered was, that Coconut oil does seem more prone to foaming, and I have had a couple of incidents of it spewing out over the top of the fryer - whether lid closed or open.

I got lots of kitchen paper ready just as a precaution before I used it, but it is still a lot to clean up, as well as being potentially dangerous - firewise. While other types of oil are noted for not foaming, in my case it was usually when using frozen fries that this occurred. Having said that, I found that if I turned the fryer temperature down to c at the beginning, left the lid open, and let it foam if necessary for a bit - the foaming then died down, and I was able then to turn it back up to c c at the end for the "double frying" if desired.

Remember that this was when using the Coconut oil. However, one of the reasons for the choice in the first place is that Coconut oil is supposed to be useable and reusable for a very long time, without going off or "rancid". The problem with using frozen "fries" is that the ice on them is water albeit frozen and I think this is why THEY are inclined to cause foaming.

The leaving up of the lid in the first place, and the lower temperature at the start seems to work, but the Coconut oil certainly gets pretty near the rim before it settles to a safer level. Apart from these discoveries in practice, and keeping to the aforementioned experience with frozen fries, I think I will be going back to a more conventional oil in future.

I discovered after lots of experience in deep frying that after using peanut oil a few times for deep fried chicken strips or turkeys, with perfect results, the oil will begin to breakdown and start to foam. Time for new oil. It is happening to me as we speak with brand new oil. I figure it must be the starch causing the foam. I dried my french-cut potatoes in the salad spinner beforehand. I came here looking for an answer. I have been using pure olive oil for frying potato chips without any problem.

It cooked well, left no unpleasant odor or taste, handled the high temperature and never foamed. But, I had coconut oil and wanted to switch over to it so I added it to the olive oil and got a surprise. It swelled up from a couple inches of oil to over ten inches of foam. I haven't found any information concerning the foaming of just coconut oil so it must be the mixing of these oils that caused the foaming. I believe the two oils are different enough that their molecular structure won't allow the moisture in the potatoes to purge quickly enough to prevent the retention of bubbles causing the foaming.

I mostly use Sunflower oil for frying, and I will re-use it up to five times before discarding, but only for vegetables or potatoes. The last time I use it I will generally use it for frying some meat dredged in flour because I know it will be the last time. I only ever get foam when I fry chicken or porkchops, so I'm not sure what causes the foam.

With potatoes it will bubble up, but not to the point of foam. Maybe starch? When I am making Fries or chips, I cut the potatoes and soak them in cold water, rinsing twice to get rid of as much of the starch as I can, then drain and pat dry before dropping them in the oil. The thing that might make a difference is that I don't use a dedicated fryer, but a 12" pan on an induction surface with oil at about a 1" depth.