Effect of the Addition of Basil Essential Oil on the

Degradation of Palm Olein during Repeated Deep

Frying of French Fries
Gabriel Abraham Cardoso-Ugarte, C. Christian Morlán-Palmas, and Marı́a Elena Sosa-Morales
C: Food Chemistry

Abstract: The potential antioxidant power of basil essential oil under frying conditions was explored. Two concentrations
(200 or 500 ppm) were added to palm olein (PO) to evaluate their effect on fat oxidation/degradation during repeated
frying of French fries at 180 ◦ C. A higher oxidative stability index was detected for PO with basil essential oil at 200 ppm.
Both concentrations showed lower p-anisidine values than PO without basil essential oil after 5 d of frying. Addition at
500 ppm resulted in the lowest total polar compounds and free fatty acids contents. Thus, the addition of basil essential
oil improved the performance of PO during repeated frying of French fries.

Keywords: basil essential oil, deep frying, natural antioxidants, oxidative stability, palm olein

Practical Application: The successful results of the antioxidant power of basil essential oil shown in this study are useful
for manufacturers of frying oils. Oils/fats for frying could be added with low concentrations of this natural essential oil in
order to extend their use in restaurants and fast-food services, which produce large amounts of fried foods daily. Getting
better characteristics in the frying medium, producers would optimize their operational time and costs.

Introduction The essential oil of basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) is classified as

Antioxidants are commonly added to fats, oils, and foods
containing substantial amount of fat to inhibit the develop-
ment of off-flavors arising from the oxidation of unsaturated
fatty acids (Sharif and others 2009; Che Man and Tan 1999).
The most widely used synthetic antioxidants in foods are butyl-
hydroxytoluene (BHT), butyl-hydroxyanisol (BHA), and tertiari
butyl-hydroquinone (TBHQ) (Politeo and others 2007). Although
synthetic antioxidants are very effective during storage and trans-
port of oils and fats, they are less effective at frying temperatures,
which normally are between 130 and 180 ◦ C. In addition, there
are some serious problems concerning its safety and toxicity (Sharif
and others 2009), being a health hazard, causing biological damage
to living tissues and increasing risk of cardiovascular diseases (Addis
and Park 1989; Chow 1992). Therefore, a consumer-friendly way
for improving the stability of frying oils and fats is the addition
of natural antioxidants (Sharif and others 2009), such as pheno-
lic compounds from fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, leaves, roots,
and barks (Gülcin and others 2007). Selected natural extracts and
compounds have been evaluated as antioxidants during operations
of repeated deep-fat frying. Lalas and Dourtoglu (2003) reported
rosemary extract as a powerful antioxidant during frying of potato
chips. Jaswir and others (2000) successfully tested sage extract and
citric acid as antioxidants during frying of potato chips. Rossi
and others (2007) reported that the addition of tocopherol and
tocotrienols resulted in higher stability of refined vegetable oils
during frying of French Fries.
MS 20121723 Submitted 12/14/2012, Accepted 4/16/2013. Authors Cardoso-
Ugarte and Sosa-Morales are with Dept. de Ingenierı́a Quı́mica, Alimentos y Am-
biental, Univ. de las Américas Puebla, Ex-Hacienda Santa Catarina Mártir S/N,
Cholula, Puebla 72810, México. Author Morlán-Palmas is with AarhusKarlshamn
México, Héroes de Nocupétaro 1022, Col. Industrial, Morelia, Michoacán 58130,
México. Direct inquiries to author Sosa-Morales (E-mail: mariae.sosa@udlap.mx).
a primary antioxidant, since it acts removing or inactivating the
free radicals produced during the oxidation reactions, through
the donation of hydrogen atoms, interrupting the chain reaction
(Cichosky and others 2011). Hussain and others (2008) attributed
the powerful antioxidant capacity of basil essential oil to its
flavonoids and phenolic compounds content. Several authors have
reported the antioxidant activity of basil essential oil, mostly in in
vitro assays. Jayasinghe and others (2003) demonstrated the antiox-
idant capacity of basil essential oil through 3 different methods,
while the antioxidant capacities of basil essential oil and synthetic
antioxidant BHT were compared by Lee and others (2005) result-
ing in higher antioxidant activity in the basil essential oil. Owing
to its distinctive smell and taste, basil has been extensively used in
the culinary field (Lee and others 2005; Politeo and others 2007),
and coupled to its antioxidant activity, makes it a potential additive
in the production of fried foods. However, there are not reports
about its application during repeated frying of foods.
Recently, the use of partially hydrogenated oils has increased as
frying media (Izbaim and others 2010). Refined, blanched, and
deodorized (RBD) palm olein (PO) is a rich source of saturated
fatty acids, as well as monounsaturated fatty acids, its popularity
has grown for several functional reasons, such as its inherent sta-
bility and resistance to oxidation (Naghshineh and others 2009).
Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the ef-
fect of the addition of basil essential oil as a natural antioxidant on
the performance of PO during 5 d of repeated frying of French
Fries.
Materials and Methods
Extraction of basil essential oil and identification of its
compounds
The basil was purchased in a local market in the city of Puebla,
Mexico; the herb was dried at room temperature and the essential



C 2013 Institute of Food Technologists
R

C978 Journal of Food Science r Vol. 78, Nr. 7, 2013 doi: 10.1111/1750-3841.12166
Further reproduction without permission is prohibited
Basil essential oil in olein for frying . . .
oil was extracted by microwave-assisted extraction (Cardoso-
Ugarte and others 2013). Identification of the main compounds of
the essential oil was determined by gas chromatography coupled
with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) in a chromatograph (Agilent
Technologies model 6850N) equipped with a triple axis mass
detector (5975C). A capillary column (HP5-MS) was used for
the separation of the components, with helium as carrier gas at
1.5 mL/min; the temperature was 240 ◦ C and the separation was
done during 50 min (Marangon and others 2008). Identification
of the main compounds was carried out using the NIST 2010
Library.
Frying medium and French fries
The frying process was performed using RBD PO supplied by
AarhusKarlshamn Mexico (AAK, Morelia, Michoacan, Mexico).
French fries (McCain, Florenceville, New Brunswick, Canada)
were purchased in a local supermarket in the city of Puebla,
Mexico; their main ingredients were potato, oil from canola
and/or soybean and/or cotton seed and/or sunflower, dextrose,
and sodium acid pyrophosphate.
Frying process
Three different concentrations of basil essential oil (antioxi-
C: Food Chemistry
dant)/PO were tested in the experiment (0, 200, and 500 ppm).
The frying process was held using a 3 L domestic electric fryer
(model ODF550, Oster, Boca Raton, Fl., U.S.A.). The frying pro-
cess of each antioxidant/PO concentration consisted in 5 frying
cycles; 1 cycle consisted in frying 80 batches of 80 g of French fries
in 2.9 L of the frying media at 180 ◦ C during 2.5 min, and then
draining in the basket during 1 min. Before starting each frying
cycle, the level of the oil was revised and the necessary amount
of fresh oil was added to keep a constant level of 2.9 L. This oil
replenishment was conducted in order to simulate the common
practices developed in fast food establishments.
Figure 1–Induction periods of the PO samples
before and after the frying process (Rancimat
temperature of 130 ◦ C; airflow rate of 9 L/h).
Figure 2–PV of PO, PO with 200 ppm of basil
essential oil (BEO) and PO with 500 ppm of BEO
during a 5-d frying cycles of French fries.
∗ Means containing different letters in the same
day are significantly different (P < 0.05).
Vol. 78, Nr. 7, 2013 r Journal of Food Science C979
 Basil essential oil in olein for frying . . .

Table 1–CDVs of the PO samples before and after the frying tested, the net color change was calculated. Total color change is a
process. combination of parameters L, a, and b values and is a colorimetric
CDV (mmol/L) parameter extensively used to characterize the variation of color
in foods during processing (Maskan 2003).
Time of PO with 200 ppm of PO with 500 ppm of
use (days) PO basil essential oil basil essential oil
Statistical analysis
0 3.7 ± 0.4a 3.5 ± 0.1a 3.3 ± 0.1a
Results were analyzed by an analysis of variance (ANOVA) using
C: Food Chemistry

5 17.7 ± 0.5c 15.0 ± 0.4b 13.8 ± 0.5b

the software Minitab 14 (Minitab Inc., State College, Pa., U.S.A.).
Means containing different letters in the same row are significantly different (P < 0.05). A Tukey test was performed with a confidence level of 95%.

Results and Discussion

Oils oxidative stability index
The oxidative stability index (OSI) was determined in the fresh Active compounds of basil essential oil
oils using a Metrohm Rancimat model 679 (Herisau, Switzerland); After the GC-MS, 28 compounds were identified in the basil
this is based on the measurement of time before the oil oxidation, essential oil. The most abundant compound was methyl cinnamate
also known as induction period (Farhoosh 2007). The tests were (18.23%, retention time 26.88 min), followed by linalool (15.07%,
done with 2.5 g of oil at 130 ◦ C at an airflow rate of 9 L/h. retention time 17.72 min), eucalyptol (14.75%, retention time
13.78 min), cadinol (9.59%, retention time 33.33 min), and β-
Chemical and physical analyses cubebene (8.48%, 29.38 min). Linalool and methyl-cinnamate in
Analyzed samples were the fresh olein and used olein collected basil were also reported by Simon and others (1999) as major
after 1, 3, and 5 frying cycles. The following chemical and physical aroma compounds in some basil cultivars.
analyses were developed by duplicate in order to investigate the
fats’ degradation. Effect of addition of basil essential oil on the OSI of PO
The peroxide value (PV) was determined according to the Mex- The induction period of PO without antioxidants and added
ican standard NMX-F-154-1987 (1987). One gram of KI and 30 with basil essential oil, before and after the frying process, is shown
mL of glacial acetic acid–chloroform solution (ratio of 3 : 2 v/v) in Figure 1. As expected, fresh samples showed longer induction
were added to 1 g of olein; the flask was heated and 0.5 mL of a periods than after 5 d of frying. The fresh PO added with 200
5% KI solution and 30 mL of hot distilled water were added; then ppm of basil essential oil showed the longest induction period
2.5 mL of 2% starch solution was added and the final solution was with 26 h almost 3 times that observed for fresh PO without
titrated with a 0.01 N sodium thiosulfate solution. antioxidants (9 h). This is a valuable result, and an indicator of
The conjugated diene value (CDV) was also determined. PO the high-potential antioxidant power of the basil essential oil at-
samples where diluted to 1 : 600 with hexane (high-performance tributed to its active compounds: methyl cinnamate, linalool, and
liquid chromatography grade) and a sample was taken in a 5 mL eucalyptol. Hernández-Nava (2011) reported an induction period
quartz cuvette. The absorbance at 234 nm was measured using of 12.9 h for PO added with 200 ppm of synthetic antioxidant
a UV-visible spectrophotometer (Schimadzu, Japan) with hexane TBHQ, while 7 h were achieved for PO added with a blend of
as blank. CDV was obtained using the extinction coefficient of 200 ppm of citric acid and 200 ppm of TBHQ, and more than 32
29000 mol/L (Shimada and others 1991; Saguy and others 1996). h for PO added with a blend of 200 ppm of rosemary extract and
◦
The p-anisidine value was determined following the official 200 ppm of TBHQ at the same Rancimat conditions (130 C).
method Cd 18-90 of the AOCS (1992) that measures the amount These data support that the addition of basil essential oil leads to an
of aldehyde compounds in the sample. In this method, 0.5 g of improvement on the oxidative stability of PO, having a larger in-
olein were weighed in a 25 mL volumetric flask and gauged with duction period compared with synthetic antioxidant TBHQ used
2-2-4 trymethyl pentane solvent, the absorbance was read at 350 separately as well as some natural/synthetic antioxidants mixtures,
nm using the solvent as blank. Then, 1 mL of the p-anisidine such as citric acid+TBHQ.
reagent was added to 5 mL of the sample and 5 mL of the blank There is a complex dependence between induction period and
and their absorbance was read again. lipid peroxidation rate during Rancimat test. OSI for basil essential
The free fatty acids (FFAs) content was determined following oil did not increase with the increase of concentration. The same
the official method 940.28 (AOAC 2000). A sample of olein (5 g) behavior was reported by Jimenez-Patiño (2010), who reported
and 50 mL of isopropyl alcohol were titrated with 0.1 N NaOH shorter induction times for oils added with 630 ppm of extract
using phenolphthalein as indicator. The FFAs content was reported of olive leaves than those exhibited when the extract was added
as percentage of palmitic acid. at 250 ppm. The relationship between OSI and natural antiox-
Total polar compounds (TPCs) were determined using the Testo idants concentration can be nonlinear (Carelli and others 2005)
270 instrument (Testo, Lenzkirch, Germany). The instrument was due to some antioxidants that are consumed in chain termination
immersed in 50 mL of hot olein at 180 ◦ C showing the TPC reactions during Rancimat assay, but also, in other side reactions,
percentage in the display, which was calculated from the dielectric decreasing its efficacy at higher concentrations (Yanishlieva and
constant of the sample (Flores-Alvarez and others 2012). Marinova, 1992), and consequently, causing a prooxidative effect
Olein color (20 mL) was determined in a colorimeter Color in in vitro assays.
Gard System 05 (Hunter-Lab, Reston, Va., U.S.A.). Measurement
was performed in triplicate in transmittance mode, and expressed Effect of the addition of basil essential oil to PO on
using the L, a, and b parameters of the Hunter scale. The col- oxidative rancidity
orimeter was previously calibrated with a black tile and light (L = Figure 2 shows the PVs of the PO without antioxidants and
100, a = 0, b = 0) (Enriquez-Fernandez and others 2011). With added with basil essential oils at 2 concentrations. The PVs in-
the initial and final values of color parameters of the 3 samples creased suddenly in the 1st day of frying, and then, remained steady

C980 Journal of Food Science r Vol. 78, Nr. 7, 2013

Basil essential oil in olein for frying . . .
Table 2–p-Anisidine values and TPCs (%) of PO and PO with 200 and 500 ppm of BEO before and after 1, 3, and 5 d of frying.
p-Anisidine values
Time of PO with 200
use (d) PO ppm of BEO
0 3.31 ± 0.002a 4.05 ± 0.00b
1 52.99 ± 0.006a 65.7 ± 0.08b
3 99.55 ± 0.004a 76.96 ± 0.00b
5 96.76 ± 0.007a 82.09 ± 0.00b
Means containing different letters in the same row are significantly different (P < 0.05).
during the following days in the 3 samples. As expected, the PO
without antioxidants showed the highest PV (11.6 meq/kg) at the
end of the process. The PVs of both concentrations of PO with
basil essential oil at the end of the process ranged between 9.73 and
10.06 meq/kg, showing no significant difference between them
(P < 0.05). These values are lower than 15 meq/kg, the limit value
permitted in Alimentarius (2003) for fats and oils. Also, the PV
for PO added with basil essential oil was lower than the found for
PO with 200 ppm of TBHQ after 4 d of use for frying of French
fries (Hernández-Nava 2011).
Higher peroxide indices were reported by Serjouie and oth-
ers (2010) when frying potato chips with PO, canola oil, and a
blend of them in a 5-d frying cycle, with values of 10.85, 10.23,
and 11.74 meq/kg, respectively. Andrikopoulos and others (2002)
reported PVs of 11.2, 10.8, and 13.4 meq/kg in the frying of
potato chips with virgin olive oil, vegetable shortening, and sun-
flower oil, respectively. PV is one of the most frequently de-
termined quality parameters during oil production, storage, and
marketing, and it shows the degree of oxidation in the substance
and measures the amount of total peroxides as a product of pri-
mary oil oxidation (Farhoosh and Moosavi 2009) and also shows
good correlation with organoleptic flavor scores. However, the
use of PV as fat quality indicator is only reliable during the initial
stages of lipid oxidation because the PV increases to a maximum
and then decreases as storage time advances (Akinoso and others
2010).
TPCs
PO with 500 PO with 200 PO with 500
ppm of BEO PO ppm of BEO ppm of BEO
6.49 ± 0.002c 3.83 ± 0.28a 3.56 ± 0.05a 4.06 ± 0.15a
67.94 ± 0.002c 8.66 ± 0.57ab 9.43 ± 0.30a 8.43 ± 0.05b
C: Food Chemistry
79.38 ± 0.003c 12.66 ± 0.28a 14.03 ± 0.23b 10.33 ± 0.76c
82.52 ± 0.000b 17.66 ± 0.28a 15.26 ± 0.15b 13.76 ± 0.25c
Table 1 shows the CDV for the studied POs, which increased
with the time of use and were lower when basil essential oil was
added. CDV at the end of the study (5 d, around 20 h of fry-
ing) was between 13.8 and 17.7 mmol/L, lower than the reported
by Saguy and others (1996) for cotton oil after 22.3 h of fry-
ing (74.50 mmol/L) and those by Farhoosh and Tavassoli-Kafrani
(2011) for sunflower oil without antioxidants after 20 h of frying
(45.5 mmol/L). Thus, the oxidation level for PO added with basil
essential oil can be considered as low, with a positive effect of this
essential oil.
Table 2 shows the p-anisidine values (p-AV) of PO without
antioxidants and PO with 200 and 500 ppm of basil essential oil
before and after 1, 3, and 5 d of frying of French fries. Initially, the
p-AV of the 3 fresh samples was low and a significant difference
(P < 0.05) was detected among them. However, a sudden increase
in the 3 samples was detected after the 1st day of frying and
continued to increase until the 5th day. At the end of the process,
both samples added with basil essential oil showed similar p-AV
with no significant difference between them (P > 0.05). On the
other hand, PO without antioxidant showed the highest p-AV at
the end of the process and it was significantly different (P < 0.05)
in comparison with the other 2 samples added with basil essential
oil. Similar results were reported by Lee and others (2002) when
testing different concentrations of spinach powder as a natural
antioxidant in soybean oil, the p-anisidine reported values ranged
between 80 and 120.
Figure 3–FFAs content of PO, PO with 200 ppm
of BEO, and PO with 500 ppm of BEO during a
5-d frying cycles of French fries.
∗ Means containing different letters in the same
day are significantly different (P < 0.05).
Vol. 78, Nr. 7, 2013 r Journal of Food Science C981
 Basil essential oil in olein for frying . . .

ppm of BEO
Hydrolitic rancidity of PO added with basil essential oil

PO with 500

37.7 ± 0.1ab
45.6 ± 2.0b

31.0 ± 0.6c
42.6 ± 1.9a

52.0 ± 1.0a
during repeated frying

Table 3–Color parameters (L, a, b) and total color difference (E) of PO, PO with 200 ppm of BEO, and PO with 500 ppm of BEO during a 5-d frying cycles of French fries.
FFAs contents in frying oils increase with the number of fry-

0
ing cycles (Choe and Min 2007); therefore, FFA value is used to
monitor the quality of frying oil. Figure 3 shows the FFA content
expressed as palmitic acid of the 3 samples of PO tested in this

ppm of BEO
PO with 200

11.1 ± 0.0b
28.9 ± 4.5b
14.5 ± 1.7b
14.7 ± 1.8b
22.8 ± 2.0a
work during 5 d of frying. The FFA content in the fresh samples
E
C: Food Chemistry

was less than 0.1% for olein added or not with basil essential oil;

0
however, in the 1st day of frying, it increased in the 3 samples,
showing an increasing tendency in the next 3 d and a slight de-
crease in the 5th day for PO and PO with 200 ppm of basil essen-
28.0 ± 1.3a
44.3 ± 1.7a
43.9 ± 1.7a
40.1 ± 1.0a
48.4 ± 2.2a
tial oil. The PO added with 500 ppm of basil essential oil showed
PO

an increasing tendency regarding the days of frying, which is in

0

agreement with results reported by Farhoosh and Tavassoli-Kafrani

(2011) when potato chips were fried with sunflower oil. Also,
ppm of BEO
PO with 500

37.7 ± 0.0b
67.2 ± 1.6b
24.5 ± 0.5c
30.5 ± 0.4a

28.1 ± 0.3a
33.0 ± 1.3a

PO added with 500 ppm of basil essential oil showed the lowest
FFA content after 5 d of frying (0.33%) and significant difference
(P < 0.05) was detected with respect of the other 2 sam-
ples, while the final FFA content of PO and PO added
with 200 ppm of basil essential oil was 0.51% and 0.53%,
ppm of BEO
PO with 200

respectively, showing no significant difference between them

18.2 ± 0.1b

17.5 ± 1.5b
25.1 ± 0.9a

32.4 ± 0.8a

31.6 ± 0.2a
33.9 ± 0.1a

(P < 0.05). Final FFA contents of samples are under the limit
b

of regulations marked by most of the countries, which range be-

tween 1% and 2.5% (McSavage and Trevisan 2001). FFA content
of PO with 500 ppm of basil essential oil after 5 d of frying showed
35.4 ± 1.9ab

to be lower than the reported by Debnath and others (2012) us-

26.8 ± 0.7a
37.4 ± 2.0a
33.4 ± 2.0a
33.1 ± 0.6a

31.5 ± 1.0a
PO

ing rice bran oil and Abdulkarim and others (2007) using canola
oil, soybean oil, and PO, under similar frying conditions. On the
other hand, Hernández-Nava (2011) reported only 0.2% of FFA
when PO was added with 200 ppm of TBHQ and used for 3 d for
ppm of BEO
PO with 500

6.7 ± 0.2b
12.7 ± 0.5b
6.4 ± 0.4c
6.3 ± 0.2c
− 6.7 ± 1.4a
1.4 ± 0.2a

frying of French fries; TBHQ was more efficient preventing the

hydrolytic rancidity than the basil essential oil under the studied
conditions.
ppm of BEO
PO with 200

TPCs of PO added or not with basil essential oil during

1.2 ± 2.1b
6.4 ± 0.0b
9.5 ± 1.1b
10.7 ± 0.8b

13.0 ± 0.7b
13.5 ± 0.0a

repeated frying
a

Means containing different letters in the same parameter row are significantly different (P < 0.05).

Determination of TPC in abused oils and fats is a well-accepted

method due to its accuracy and reproducibility. It provides the
most reliable measure of the extent of deterioration in frying oils
− 8.7 ± 0.1a
1.4 ± 0.2a
16.0 ± 0.6a
15.1 ± 0.7a
12.7 ± 0.4a
18.3 ± 1.1a

and fats. The level of polar compounds is a good indicator of the

quality of used frying oils and fats, giving information of the total
PO

amount of newly formed compounds having higher polarity than

that of triacylglycerols (Abdulkarim and others 2007). TPC of PO
without antioxidants and PO added with 200 ppm and 500 ppm
ppm of BEO
PO with 500

44.5 ± 1.2c

61.9 ± 0.3c
57.7 ± 0.6c
88.9 ± 0.3a

48.5 ± 1.0a
53.7 ± 0.7a

of basil essential oil after 0, 1, 3, and 5 d of frying of French fries

are shown in Table 2. The TPC percentages increased as frying
usage increased. Initial (fresh olein) TPC percentage in the studied
samples showed values between 3.56 and 4.06 with no significant
difference (P > 0.05). In some cases, TPC values in PO without
ppm of BEO
PO with 200

antioxidant are comparable or lower (only after 3 d of frying) to

53.9 ± 1.2b
32.8 ± 0.1b

27.7 ± 2.6b
49.7 ± 0.4b
53.2 ± 0.1b
52.4 ± 1.2a
L

the calculated for PO with 200 ppm of basil essential oil. Some
concentrations of natural antioxidants could promote this, as it
was observed by Warner and Gehring (2009) when added citric
acid to soybean oil for frying. However, at the end of the study,
a significant difference (P < 0.05) was detected. PO added with
88.2 ± 1.2a
64.3 ± 0.9a
52.1 ± 0.6a
51.8 ± 0.3a
55.5 ± 1.0a
48.3 ± 0.4a
PO

500 ppm of basil essential oil reported the lowest TPC percentages
along the frying process; the final TPC was 13.76%. This value is
similar to the reported for PO added with 200 ppm of TBHQ (14%
Time of

after 4 d of frying, determined by Hernández-Nava 2011); thus,

use (d)

basil essential oil was more efficient preventing polymerization

than the synthetic TBHQ under the same conditions of study. At
0
1
2
3
4
5

C982 Journal of Food Science r Vol. 78, Nr. 7, 2013

Basil essential oil in olein for frying . . .
the end of the study, PO without antioxidants and added with 200
or 500 ppm of basil essential oil had TPC values under the limit
established by regulations, which is 25%.
Plessis and Meredith (1999) reported a final TPC percentage of
13.2% in the frying of potato chips following a similar method-
ology of replenishment of oil performed in this work. The TPC
percentages of PO added with both concentrations of basil essen-
tial oils are lower than the percentages obtained by Flores-Alvarez
and others (2012) that reported 20.5% and 23.0% of TPC after
4 d of frying of French fries and chicken nuggets with a blend
of PO and canola oil. Romero and others (1999) also found that
frequent replenishment of fresh oil decreases the formation of
polar compounds, dyacylglicerols, and FFA, increasing the frying
life and quality of oils.
Color change in PO physical parameters during repeated
frying
Table 3 shows the behavior of color parameters L, a, and b of
the samples tested along the frying process. A noticeable decrease
in parameter L at the end of the process was detected for PO
and PO with 500 ppm of basil essential oil; however, although
some decreases and increases are detected in PO with 200 ppm
of basil essential oil from days 1 to 4, the initial and final L value
showed no significant difference (P < 0.05). The decrease of L
value during frying processes indicates darkness in the frying oil,
which may be caused by the scorched food bits and by the prod-
ucts of Maillard reaction from the interactions of ingredients and
food constituents, such as sugar and amino acids (Maskan 2003).
An increasing tendency in the a parameter that indicates a reddish
color was detected for the 3 samples, and also a significant dif-
ference (P < 0.05) between the initial and final a parameters was
detected in the 3 PO samples tested. An increase of yellow color
(parameter b) was detected in the 3 samples after the frying process
showing a significant difference (P < 0.05) between the initial
and final b values. The total color difference (E) of the 3 POs
used in this work is shown in Table 3. After the 1st day of frying,
the 3 samples showed a significant change in color (E > 10)
and such behavior continued throughout the process. However,
the PO with 200 ppm of basil essential oil showed the lowest E
value (14.65) after the 5th day of frying. There is few literature
devoted to evaluate the effect of different concentrations of natu-
ral antioxidants on the physical properties of the frying oil, such
as color. Increasing in color intensity in the frying medium has
been related to accumulation of nonvolatile compounds through-
out frying, mainly oxidized triacylglycerols and FFA (Serjouie and
others 2010). In our case, the low color changes in PO added
with 200 ppm of basil essential oil could be due to lower content
of certain oxidized compounds no determined in this study, but
predicted in the Rancimat test.
Conclusion
The high antioxidant activity of basil essential oil added to PO
was confirmed throughout OSI and during repeated frying of
French fries, because of its active components, mainly methyl
cinnamate, linalool, and eucalyptol. Owing to the significant re-
duction of both oxidation parameters, peroxide and p-anisidine
values, the addition of basil essential oil at 200 or 500 ppm to
PO derived in an improvement of the performance of the fry-
ing media. Moreover, TPCs yielded favorable results with both
concentrations. Therefore, taking into account the high cost of
essential oils, the 200 ppm concentration of basil essential oil re-
sulted in a good option to use as a natural antioxidant to retard
oxidation/degradation of PO during repeated frying of French
fries.
Acknowledgments
Authors thank the financial support from Consejo Nacional de
Ciencia y Tecnologı́a, México (CONACyT) for the scholarships
to author G. Cardoso-Ugarte.
C: Food Chemistry
References
Abdulkarim SM, Long K, Lai OM, Muhammad SK, Ghazali HM. 2007. Frying quality and
stability of high-oleic Moringa oleifera seed oil in comparison with other vegetable oils. Food
Chem 105(4):1382–9.
Addis PB, Park S. 1989. Role of lipid oxidation products in atheroscicrosis. In: Taylor SL,
Scanlan LA, editors. Food toxicology a perspective on the risks. New York: Marcel Dekker.
p 297–330.
Akinoso R, Aboaba SA, Olayanju TM. 2010. Effects of moisture content and heat treatment on
peroxide value and oxidative stability of un-refined sesame oil. Afr J Food Agric Nutr Dev
10(10): 4269–85.
Andrikopoulos N, Dedoussis G, Falirea A, Kalogeropoulos N, Hatzinikola H. 2002. Deterio-
ration of natural antioxidant species of vegetable edible oils during the domestic deep-frying
and pan-frying of potatoes. Intl J Food Sci Nutr 53(4):351–63.
AOAC. 2000. Official methods of analysis of AOAC International. 17th ed. Arlington, VA:
Association of Official Analytical Chemists.
AOCS. 1992. Official methods and recommended practices of the AOCS. 4th ed. Chicago, IL:
American Oil Chemists’ Society.
Cardoso-Ugarte GA, Juárez-Becerra GP, Sosa-Morales ME, López-Malo A. 2013. Microwave-
assisted extraction of essential oils from herbs. J Microw Power Electromagn Energy 47(1):63–
72.
Carelli AA, Franco IC, Crapiste GH. 2005. Effectiveness of added natural antioxidants in sun-
flower oil. Grasas y Aceites 56(4):303–10.
Che Man YB, Tan CP. 1999. Effects of natural and synthetic antioxidants on changes in refined,
blanched, and deodorized palm olein during deep-fat frying of potato chips. J Am Oil Chem
Soc 76(3):331–9.
Choe E, Min DB. 2007. Chemistry of deep-fat frying oils. J Food Sci 72(5):77–85.
Chow CK. 1992. Fatty acids in foods and their health implications. New York: Marcel Dekker.
Cichosky A, Cansian R, De Oliveira D, Gaio I, Saggirato A. 2011. Lipid and protein oxidation
in the internal part of Italian type salami containing basil essential oil (Ocimum basilicum L.).
Ciencia Tecnol Aliment 31(2):436–42.
Codex Alimentarius. 2003.Codex standard for named vegetable oils. Codex Stan 210-1999, p
5–13.
Debnath S, Rastogi N, Gopala AG, Lokesh BR. 2012. Effect of frying cycles on physical,
chemical and heat transfer quality of rice bran oil during deep-fat frying of poori: an Indian
traditional fried food. Food Bioprod Process 90(2):249–56.
Enriquez-Fernandez BE, Alvarez de la Cadena Y, Yañez L, Sosa-Morales ME. 2011. Comparison
of the stability of palm olein and a palm olein/canola oil blend during deep-fat frying of
chicken nuggets and French fries. Intl J Food Sci Technol 46(6):1231–7.
Farhoosh R. 2007. The effect of operational parameters of the Rancimat method on the deter-
mination of the oxidative stability measures and shelf-life prediction of soybean oil. J Am Oil
Chem Soc 84:205–9.
Farhoosh R, Moosavi SM. 2009. Evaluating the performance of peroxide and conjugated diene
values in monitoring quality of used frying oils. J Agric Sci Technol 11:173–9.
Farhoosh R, Tavassoli-Kafrani MH. 2011. Simultaneous monitoring of the conventional quali-
tative indicators during frying of sunflower oil. Food Chem 125(1):209–13.
Flores-Álvarez MC, Molina-Hernández EF, Hernández-Raya JC, Sosa-Morales ME. 2012. The
effect of food type (fish nuggets of French fries) on oil blend degradation during repeated
frying. J Food Sci 77(11):C1136–43.
Gülcin I, Elmastas M, Aboul-Enein HY. 2007. Determination of antioxidant and radical scaveng-
ing activity of basil (Ocimum basilicum L. Family Lamiaceae) assayed by different methodologies.
Phytother Res 21:354–61.
Hernández-Nava R. 2011. Efecto de la adición de extracto de romero o ácido cı́trico sobre el de-
terioro de oleı́na de palma con TBHQ durante el freı́do de papas a la francesa. [Undergraduate
thesis]. Puebla, México: Universidad de las Américas Puebla. 41 p.
Hussain AI, Anwar F, Hussain-Sherazi ST, Przybylski R. 2008. Chemical composition, antioxi-
dant and antimicrobial activities of basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) essential oils depends on seasonal
variations. Food Chem 108(3):986–95.
Izbaim D, Faiz B, Moudden A, Taifi N, Aboudaoud I. 2010. Evaluation of the performance of
frying oils using an ultrasonic technique. Grasas y Aceites. 61(2):151–6.
Jaswir I, Che Man Y, Kitts D. 2000. Use of natural antioxidants in refined palm olein during
repeated deep-fat frying. Food Res Intl 33(6):501–8.
Jayasinghe C, Gotoh N, Aoki T, Wada S. 2003. Phenolic composition and antioxidant activity
of sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.). J Agric Food Chem 51(15):4442–9.
Jiménez-Patiño PA. 2010. Effect of the addition of olive leaves extracts on the thermo-oxidative
stability of oils with different unsaturation degree. [PhD dissertation]. Universidad de Chile,
Santiago de Chile. (In Spanish).
Lalas S, Dourtglou V. 2003. Use of rosemary extract in preventing oxidation during deep-fat
frying of potato chips. J Am Oil Chem Soc 80(6):579–83.
Lee J, Lee S, Lee H, Park K, Choe E. 2002. Spinach (Spinacia oleracea) powder as a natural
food-grade antioxidant in deep-fat-fried products. J Agric Food Chem 50(20):5664–9.
Lee S, Umano K, Shibamoto T, Lee K. 2005. Identification of volatile components in basil
(Ocimum basilicum L.) and thyme leaves (Thymus vulgaris L.) and their antioxidant properties.
Food Chem 91(1):131–7.
Maskan M. 2003. Change in color and rheological behavior of sunflower seed oil during frying
and after adsorbent treatment of used oil. Eur Food Res Technol 218(1):20–5.
Marangon C, Newandram G, Dev O, Moreira M. 2008. Composition and antifungal activity of
the essential oil of the Brazilian Chenopodium ambrosioides L. J Chem Ecol 34(9):1213–8.
McSavage J, Trevisan S. 2001. The use and abuse of frying oil. Food Serv Technol 1(2):85–92.
Vol. 78, Nr. 7, 2013 r Journal of Food Science C983
 Basil essential oil in olein for frying . . .
Naghshineh M, Ariffin AA, Ghazali HM, Mirhosseini H, Mohammad AS, Kuntom A. 2009.
Influence of partial replacement of olive oil on frying performance of palm olein. J Food
Lipids 16(4):554–68.
NMX-F-154-1987. 1987. Foods. Vegetable or animal oils and fats. Peroxide index determina-
tion. Normas Mexicanas. Dirección General de Normas. México: Secretaria de Economı́a.
Available from: http://200.77.231.100/work/normas/nmx/2005/nmx-f-154-scfi-2005.pdf.
Accessed 2011 Oct 28. (In Spanish)
Plessis LM, Meredith AJ. 1999. Palm olein quality parameter changes during industrial produc-
tion of potato chips. J Am Oil Chem Soc 76(6):731–8.
C: Food Chemistry
Politeo O, Jukic M, Milos M. 2007. Chemical composition and antioxidant capacity of free
volatile aglycones from basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) compared with its essential oil. Food Chem
101(1):379–85.
Romero A, Cuesta C, Sanchez-Muniz J. 1999. Effect of oil replenishment during deep-fat
frying of frozen foods in sunflower oil and high-oleic acid sunflower oil. J Am Oil Chem Soc
75(2):161–7.
Rossi M, Alamprese C, Ratti S. 2007. Tocopherols and tocotrienols as free radical-scavengers
in refined vegetable oils and their stability during deep-fat frying. Food Chem 102(3):
812–7.
C984 Journal of Food Science r Vol. 78, Nr. 7, 2013
Saguy IS, Shani A, Weinberg P, Garti N. 1996. Utilization of jojoba oil for deep-fat frying of
foods. Lebensm-Wiss u-Technol 29:573–7.
Serjouie A, Tan CP, Mirhosseini H, Che Man YB. 2010. Effect of vegetable-based oil blends on
physicochemical properties of oils during deep-fat frying. Am J Food Technol 5(5):310–23.
Sharif A, Farhoosh R, Haddad MH, Tavassoli MH. 2009. Antioxidant activity of bene hull oil
compared with sesame and rice bran oils during the frying process of sunflower oil. J Food
Lipids 16:394–406.
Shimada Y, Ross Y, Karel M. 1991. Oxidation of methyl linoleate encapsulated in amorphous
lactose-based food model. J Agric Food Chem 39(4):637–41.
Simon J, Morales M, Phippen W, Fontes R, Hao Z. 1999. Basil: a source of aroma com-
pounds and a popular culinary and ornamental herb, perspectives on. New Crops New Uses
16(45):499–505.
Warner K, Gehring MM. 2009. High-temperature natural antioxidant improves soy oil for frying.
J Food Sci 74(6):C500–5.
Yanishlieva NV, Marinova EM. 1992. Inhibited oxidation of lipids. I: complex estimation and
comparison of the antioxidative properties of some natural and synthetic antioxidants. Fat Sci
Technol 94:374–9.