How do oils fry something when hot but water doesn’t?
In: 12
The “fried” taste/texture/look is due to the maillard reaction. It’s a reaction between carbohydrates and proteins at high temperatures. It’s what makes food look and taste so good. The Maillard reaction occurs between 280-330F. Under 280F, nothing will happen, over 330F you start to burn/char stuff. So you want the temp in that sweet spot.
When you boil water, it can only get up to 212F. Liquid water doesn’t go much hotter than that. You can add salt and sugar and other stuff to increase the boiling temp, but even supersaturated salt water boils at 225F. So for practical reasons, water just can’t get hot enough to “fry” things.
Oils on the other hand, can get much hotter. Vegetable oil can be stably heated up to about 400F before the oil starts to burn. Lard (IMO the best thing to fry in) gets up to about 380F before burning. Because those things can get up to the temps required for the maillard reaction, it’s possible to fry foods in them.
Latest Answers