Flour tortillas continue to be a growing category within the bakery segment. And the choice of either a liquid oil or solid fat for a tortilla can impact the product eating characteristics and processing factors, says Michelle Peitz, technical solutions and marketing, oilseeds, ADM, Chicago. “Solid fats are usually preferred, as they can provide a more flexible tortilla and are less prone to sticking together throughout the offerings shelf life. At ADM, we use a variety of solutions for tortilla shortenings including interesterified soybean oil, a tried and true industry shortening for tortillas, as well as blended solutions and palm oil.”
When selecting oils for producing tortilla chips, manufacturers should consider several factors including flavor, cost, and product positioning. “Corn oil is a familiar favorite among consumers, delivering flavor and unsaturated fats as well as excellent frying qualities,” says Peitz. “The inherent stability of corn oil provides exceptional performance in the fryer, as well as in the shelf life of finished products like tortilla chips. As consumers look for more interesting snack foods, we see tortilla chips including various beans in addition to specialty grains like quinoa and amaranth. In these trending snack formulations, a higher-stability oil, such as our high-oleic sunflower oil, is often beneficial to protect the snack’s flavor and shelf life.”