Some Tucson restaurants are investing in a technology they say makes their kitchens "greener" and improves their deep-fried food quality.
Frylow, a ceramic device for deep fryers, is a titanium- and platinum-based ceramic block, imported from Japan, that allows a longer period between oil-change cycles.
Restaurants usually change the oil for cooking deep-fried foods once a week. By using Frylow, they can change the oil every two weeks, a cost-cutter.
Users put the ceramic block in an oil vat when cooking deep-fried food and it conditions the oil so it can stay fresher longer. The technology acts upon the oil at the molecular level to slow down the oxidization process and increase the oil's thermal conductivity, the company says. That allows deep fryers to cook food faster at lower temperatures, which helps to save energy and reduce oil absorption into the food.
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The technology came out in 2002 and has been widely used in other countries.
Local entrepreneur Paul O'Rourke, exclusive distributor of Frylow in Arizona, brought it to Tucson.
The cost of the ceramic block is $1,500; it's guaranteed for three years. People tend to be skeptical until they see the results, O'Rourke said.
"The only thing I can do to show the restaurants Frylow works is to give them a free trial," he said. "I haven't had a situation where it did not work yet."
In recent trials, O'Malleys on Fourth, Mays Counter, and Sir Veza's all had a 66 percent reduction in oil cost after using Frylow for two weeks, O'Rourke said.
He said Risky Business restaurant and bar, Red White and Brew, the Cup Café of Hotel Congress and the University of Arizona Dining Services had a 50 percent reduction in oil cost in the same period. On average, O'Rourke said, buyers see a return of their investment in about five months.
"I saw immediate change after putting the ceramic block in a fryer for the first week," said Carolyn Hatounian, kitchen manager of Rincon Market. "No smoke and fishy smell at all in the kitchen and dining area."
Frylow is also being used by large-scale dining services, such as the Cactus Grill at the UA Student Union.
"We use 9,000 pounds of oil for deep frying every year, but I am expecting to save 4,500 pounds this year" by using Frylow, said Kathleen Van Os, dining services division manager for the Student Union.
"We hire many student employees here," she added, and Frylow "really helps reduce the risk of injuries from changing hot oil."
Ziniu Chen is a University of Arizona journalism student who is an apprentice at the Star. Contact him at starapprentice@azstarnet.com