The Effects of Gas and Induction Heating on Frying and Roasting Cooking

— a Comparison of Properties of Fried Rice, Fried Spinach, and Thickly Folded Fried Eggs —

Abstract

  The effect of the difference between gas and induction heating (IH) on the finishes of frying and roasting cooking in terms of taste, physical properties, and tissue structure of fried rice, fried spinach, and thickly folded fried eggs was investigated. The heat was determined in a way that assured an approximately equal water temperature rising rate in the frying pan for both gas heating and IH. The bottom and side surface temperatures of the frying pan and the egg fryer were more uniform and higher when preheated on high heat using gas heating compared with IH. Fried rice and fried spinach were cooked on high heat for the same cooking time, respectively, and thick-fried eggs were cooked on medium heat so that the egg temperature was the same. The fried rice cooked using gas heating had higher salt equivalent and lower stickiness than its IH counterpart. The observation of rice in the fried rice cooked on a gas cooktop with a scanning electron microscope revealed a disruption of the surface area, which was not observed with the IH heater. The tissue structure of spinach cooked using gas heating was maintained better than its IH counterpart. The cooking time of the thickly folded fried eggs was shorter using the gas cooktop than it was with the IH heater. A thick and uniform mesh pattern was observed in the surface structure of the thickly folded fried eggs cooked on the gas cooktop, which may contribute to the high cohesiveness of the surface. Under the heating conditions in this study, the gas heating promoted more water evaporation from the ingredients and thermal protein denaturation compared to the IH, which might have influenced the finishes of frying and roasting cooking.