Effects of ball milling treated wheat flour and maltodextrin on the texture and oil absorption properties of fried batter-coated cashews and almonds

In this study, the effects of wheat flour treated with ball milling (BM) and maltodextrin on the oil absorption and textural characteristics of fried batter-coated cashews and almonds (BCAs) were investigated. The result showed that the crystallinity of the starch granules in wheat flour decreased after the BM treatment. Furthermore, the Delta H of the batter decreased as the BM time was elongated, but the addition of maltodextrin had no significant impact on Delta H. Both BM-treated wheat flour and maltodextrin increased the fracturability and decreased the oil content of the fried BCAs' batter. The addition of BM-treated wheat flour and maltodextrin decreased the oil content of the batter from 28.93% to 18.75% for batter-coated cashews and from 30.92% to 18.61% for batter-coated almonds. Overall, the addition of BM-treated wheat flour and maltodextrin in batter is an effective approach to decrease oil content and improve the textural quality of fried BCAs.