hold, the faster hydrolysis will occur, the lower the smoke
point of your oil will be, and the less efficient it will be as a
frying medium.
As it turns out, the fried chicken joint in my
neighborhood smells fishy not because it is storing old fish
under the counter—but because it doesn’t filter or change
the oil frequently enough. The fried fish shop, on the other
hand, changes its oil regularly, leaving only the aroma of its
fresh fish to linger in the air (guess which restaurant has the
longer line).
Q: What about at home? How many times can I reuse my
oil?
When frying at home, you can expect to use the same batch
of oil for six to eight frying sessions before it begins to
break down. Certain foods will cause oil to break down
faster than others. In general, the smaller the particles in
your breading or batter, the faster your oil will break down.
Thus, fried chicken that’s dredged in flour will ruin your oil
faster than eggplant slices breaded in chunkier bread crumbs
—which in turn will break down your oil faster than onion
rings dipped into a batter that turns solid when fried.
Q: How come a restaurant is able to reuse its oil so many
more times than I can at home?
This is because of one of the major advantages commercial
deep fryers have over home setups: they are not heated from
the bottom. Restaurant deep fryers have electric or gas-
powered heating elements that are several inches above the
base of the fryer. What does this mean? One of the biggest