The main purpose of this paper is to corroborate numerical modeling and experimental results for rotating flows with free-surfaces. This work is associated with dough kneading and the validation of surface positions. Free surface flow in a rotating cylinder is investigated when a fluid is stirred in a cylindrical-shaped vessel with a stirrer attached to the lid of the vessel. The stirrer may be placed in either concentric or eccentric position with respect to the axis of the vessel. Both horizontal and vertical orientations of the vessel are studied at various rotational speeds. Wetting and peeling at solid boundaries is incorporated to achieve realistic simulations. Experimental visualisation for free-surfaces involve laser scatter technology and contemporary imaging methods for more complex flows. A video capture technique is used to determine peeling stresses experimentally, which compares well with the stress obtained from numerical computations. Close agreement is obtained between numerical and experimental flow fields and free surface profiles. Model fluids employed are various percentage concentrations of CMC, which have shear-thinning properties. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.