IT201800003286A1 - METHOD FOR THE PRODUCTION AND TREATMENT OF A MEAT-BASED FOOD PRODUCT - Google Patents

Description

Description of the invention having as title:

"METHOD FOR THE PRODUCTION AND PROCESSING OF A MEAT-BASED FOOD PRODUCT"

FIELD OF APPLICATION

Embodiments described here refer to a method for the production and treatment of a meat-based food product packaged in fete, which can find application in the food, catering, large-scale distribution (GDO) and in general. in commercial establishments used to serve and market this food product.

In particular, the present invention relates to a method for treating a food product aimed at the production of meat-based food products to be sold or served in commercial establishments, shops, supermarkets, shopping centers, bars, restaurants, hotels or other type of premises used for the marketing of such products.

STATE OF THE TECHNIQUE

Meat-based food products are known, also called “sliced” or “pre-sliced”, in which cooked cuts of meat are sliced and the fetuses are vacuum-packed.

It is known that the microbiological activity normally present in food products deteriorates their organoleptic properties over time. For this reason, the cuts of meat in question are soaked with a water-based solution, also called wet or brine, containing nitrites and / or sodium nitrates, which allows normal microbiological activity to be slowed down.

It is also known, however, that the concentration of nitrates and sodium nitrites in meat is a parameter strictly regulated by various regional regulations, such as the EC Regulation 1129/2011. In particular, the EC regulation 1129/2011 currently imposes a maximum dose of 150 mg of nitrate per kg of meat. For this reason, companies operating in the agri-food sector need to develop methods for the treatment of food products that use concentrations of nitrates and sodium nitrites as low as possible for the imbibition of food products.

As regards the so-called sliced products, such as cooked bacon, cooked ham, salami, or the like, the known technique provides for the soaking of soak, or brine, in the meat, generally by syringing inside the meat and / or by means of a immersion phase of the entire piece of meat, also called "cut of meat", in the syrup.

Subsequently, a possible churning phase may be envisaged, i.e. pressure on the food product, to evenly distribute the wet inside the meat fibers.

These procedures are normally applied to the raw food product, which is then cooked, sliced and vacuum packed.

Currently, the methods of processing food products do not allow some sliced food products that are in demand by consumers to be made commercially available, including the so-called "English roast beef" in slices.

This food product has a typical red-pink color and high residual humidity, and is made by cooking the entire piece of selected beef at low temperature, and then proceeding with slicing according to the consumer's requests. . These characteristics do not allow to treat the cut of meat from which the roast beef is obtained with the methods known in the art, as the myoglobin, which gives the roast beef its characteristic organoleptic properties, including its characteristic color, reacts quickly with the air and causes browning and / or iridescence of the roast beef slices. It is clear that this should be avoided, since such a discoloration would be unattractive for a consumer, hindering the marketing of such food products.

Another drawback of this food product in slices is that the high residual humidity and low temperature cooking make the roast beef highly perishable from a microbiological point of view, which considerably reduces the "shelf-life" and therefore the commercial life of this. product.

There is therefore a need to improve the known art and make available a method for the production and treatment of a meat-based food product packaged in slices which overcomes at least one of the drawbacks of the known art.

In particular, an object of the present invention is to provide a method that allows to guarantee the microbiological stability of the food product, providing an acceptable and preferably also prolonged "shelf-life", maintaining its organoleptic properties and quality to allow it to be marketed.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for the production and treatment of a meat-based food product which allows to produce a meat-based food product which has and maintains a red-pink color for a long period. of time.

Furthermore, the present invention aims to provide a meat-based food product packaged in slices and treated with the aforementioned method which has organoleptic characteristics of high palatability and which is, at the same time, safe from the hygienic-sanitary point of view.

In order to obviate the drawbacks of the known art and to obtain these and further objects and advantages, the Applicant has studied, tested and implemented the present invention.

EXPOSURE OF THE FOUND

The present invention is expressed and characterized in the independent claims. The dependent claims disclose other features of the invention, or variants of the main solution idea.

In accordance with the aforementioned purposes, embodiments described herein refer to a method for the production and treatment of a meat-based food product which provides at least one step of cooking a cut, or portion thereof, of meat, a step of slicing the cooked meat to obtain thin slices, a step of soaking each of the slices of cooked meat using an aqueous-based solution containing nitrites and / or sodium nitrates, and the vacuum packaging of the soaked slices.

By means of the method described above it is therefore possible to obtain a pre-sliced and vacuum-packed meat-based food product that has a pink-red color similar to the characteristic pink-red color of English roast beef up to 30 days from the date of production.

The present invention also allows to obtain a meat-based food product capable of retaining its organoleptic properties for up to 30 days from the date of production, guaranteeing the microbiological stability of the food product and maintaining its wholesomeness and quality.

Embodiments of the present invention also refer to a meat-based food product, vacuum-packed in slices obtainable by means of the method described above.

Embodiments of the present invention also refer to a package of a meat-based food product, comprising a vacuum package inside which there are one or more thin slices of cooked meat, soaked in an aqueous-based solution containing nitrites and / or sodium nitrates.

These and other aspects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will be better understood with reference to the following description and the appended claims.

The various aspects and features described in the present disclosure can be applied individually where possible. These individual aspects, for example aspects and characteristics present in the description or in the attached dependent claims, can be the subject of divisional questions.

It should be noted that any aspect or characteristic that is found to be already known during the patenting procedure is intended not to be claimed and to be the subject of a disclaimer.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to the various embodiments of the invention, of which one or more examples are described here. Each example is provided by way of illustration of the invention and is not intended as a limitation thereof. For example, the features described as being part of an embodiment may be adopted on, or in association with, other embodiments to produce a further embodiment. It is understood that the present invention will include these modifications and variations.

The present disclosure may provide other embodiments and be embodied or practiced in various other ways. Furthermore, it is clarified that the phraseology and terminology used here is for descriptive purposes and should not be considered as limiting.

All the intervals reported here are understood to be inclusive of the extremes, including those that show an interval "between" two values, unless otherwise indicated.

Intervals deriving from the overlapping or joining of two or more described intervals are also included in the present description, unless otherwise indicated.

Also included in the present description are the intervals that can derive from the combination of two or more point values described, unless otherwise indicated.

By "cut of food product" or "cut of meat" here and in the present description we mean a piece or a massive portion of a food product with a protein matrix, in particular based on meat and its derivatives.

In the rest of the description, unless otherwise indicated, we will refer to an exemplary food product, and in particular to beef or pork, preferably beef.

For example, for the preparation of English roast beef, the cut of food can be rump of beef and / or sirloin of beef.

According to embodiments, the method for producing and treating a meat-based food product in accordance with the present description comprises at least the following steps:

i) cooking a cut, or portion thereof, of meat;

ii) slicing the cut of meat cooked in step i) to obtain thin slices;

iii) imbibing each of the slices obtained in step ii) with a water-based solution, also known as wets, containing nitrites and / or sodium nitrates;

iv) vacuum packing of the slices soaked in phase iii). According to possible embodiments, step i) can be carried out following conventional cooking techniques, or by means of any thermal cooking process.

By way of non-limiting example, the cut of meat can be cooked by vacuum cooking at a temperature between 50 ° C and 60 ° C, in particular at 54 °, for a period of time between 10 hours and 20 hours. , for example about 16 hours.

In this way, in the case of a food product such as English roast beef, the color inside will be advantageously reddish and, advantageously, an assimilable red-pink color, thanks to the method described here, is assumed and maintained also for the product. final food in fete and vacuum packed.

According to possible embodiments, the cooking temperature can in any case be chosen according to the type of food products to be cooked and / or according to the type of cooking used.

In accordance with possible embodiments, also step ii) of slicing the cota meat can be carried out in accordance with conventional techniques, so as to produce slices of cota meat having a thickness between 0.5 mm and 2 mm.

According to possible embodiments, the slicing can be performed using slicing machines of the type known in the art.

According to possible embodiments, between phase i) and phase ii) a phase of lowering the temperature can be provided, which advantageously allows to compact the cota meat, making it even more suitable for subsequent slicing, thus allowing a longer slicing fast and precise.

According to possible embodiments, the temperature reduction between phase i) and phase ii) can take place in an air temperature reduction cell.

Following step ii), each cooked slice of meat is soaked, individually, by means of the aforementioned aqueous-based solution containing nitrites and / or sodium nitrates. The soaking can be provided for a plurality of individual slices at the same time, immersed in the aforementioned solution, or the individual slices can be soaked one at a time.

In accordance with possible embodiments, the aqueous-based solution containing nitrates and / or sodium nitrites advantageously allows to present and maintain a red-pink color of the meat slices, similar in particular to the red-pink color of the English roast beef, for an extended period of time after vacuum packing. In particular, the Applicant has found that sodium nitrites, with respect to sodium nitrates, are better distributed inside the cooked slice of meat, resulting therefore more efficient as a lower quantity is sufficient than that envisaged in the known art. for traditional treatments with nitrites and nitrates.

According to possible embodiments, the aqueous-based solution has a sodium nitrite concentration of between 0.5 g / L and 3 g / L, in particular between 1 g / L and 2.5 g / L.

According to possible embodiments, the aqueous-based solution may further comprise one or more of flavoring substances, flavor enhancers, stabilizers and / or antioxidants.

In accordance with possible embodiments, the soaking step iii) takes place by means of complete immersion of each of the slices of cooked meat in the aqueous-based solution.

This immersion advantageously allows the water-based solution to soak the inside of each slice of cooked meat correctly and uniformly.

According to possible embodiments, the soaking step iii) can provide for immersing each slice of cooked meat on a first side, turning and immersing the same slice of cooked meat on a second side, opposite to the first side. This operation can be carried out simultaneously for a plurality of slices, or for each slice one at a time.

In accordance with these possible embodiments, the immersion can be carried out in a short period of time, allowing to speed up the soaking phase, for example from 0.5 seconds to 10 seconds, in particular from 0.5 seconds to 5 seconds. , even more particularly from 0.5 seconds to 2 seconds.

For example, each cooked slice of meat can be immersed in the water-based solution for a period of time ranging from 0.5 seconds to 2 seconds, sufficient to uniformly soak all the immersed cooked slice of meat.

Advantageously, this step of complete immersion carried out on each slice allows the water-based solution to be uniformly distributed inside the meat, without requiring a subsequent churning step.

Furthermore, since the meat is soaked following stage ii) of slicing, stage iii) advantageously allows to sanitize the meat externally in correspondence with the slicing area, reducing any microbiological activity generated during stage ii).

According to possible embodiments, following step iii) the slices of cooked meat thus soaked can be drained to remove any excess solution.

Following phase iii), and any dripping, the soaked slices of cooked meat are vacuum-packed, i.e. placed in a package and subjected to a phase iv) of vacuum packaging. By way of example only, the slices of meat could be placed inside trays and vacuum-packed with conventional "skin pack" methods.

As is known, vacuum-packed cooked food products tend to emit an "exudate" which manifests itself in the form of drops or the like, given by the diffusion of liquids and / or fat through the food product.

According to possible embodiments, the tray can internally provide on the bottom a sheet of absorbent paper or similar material, which allows to absorb the exudate and any residual moisture of the soaked and vacuum-packed slices of cooked meat.

Alternatively or in addition, the trays can provide alveolar supports to hide the exudate and any solution and / or residual moisture from view.

Following step iv), the cooked meat advantageously has a pinkish-red color.

The Applicant has experimentally found that, in a time interval between about 5 and 15 minutes after soaking, the nitrates and / or sodium nitrites contained in the slices of cooked meat initially cause a temporary browning of the food product, which changes color. from red-pink to brown.

It is known, in fact, that myoglobin reacts with oxygen in the air forming oxymyoglobin, which has a brown color.

The Applicant has, however, found that, subsequently, within about 3-5 days from packaging, the color of the food product made and treated by the method in accordance with the present description changes again, advantageously turning from brown to a red color. rosé completely similar to the red-pink color that the food product takes on immediately after the cooking phase.

Without being bound by theory, the Applicant hypothesizes that this second change in color may be due to the emission of exudate from the food product, which allows the brown compounds to be expelled from the meat.

In this way, the food product made and treated by the method in accordance with the present invention has the following benefits:

- an extremely low quantity of nitrates and / or nitrites in meat, below the maximum limit allowed in the food sector by regional regulations on the subject;

- a second change in the color of the food product that allows the latter to assume and maintain over time a red-pink color completely similar and comparable to the original post-cooking rosy-red color, making the packaged food product palatable and attractive for consumers even after a prolonged period of time in vacuum packaging.

In particular, the meat-based food product obtainable by the method according to the embodiments described here can have the aforementioned pink-red color up to 30 days from production, maintaining its organoleptic properties, resulting microbiologically stable and therefore significantly prolonging its "shelf life".

After the treatment according to the method described here, the sliced and vacuum-packed meat food product can be kept under refrigeration conditions, to be transported and / or distributed for sale in large-scale distribution, in shops, supermarkets, shopping centers. , bars, restaurants, hotels or other types of premises or commercial establishments for catering or the sale of food products used for the marketing of such products.

Advantageously, the meat-based food product assumes the final color similar to the original color within a short time interval, completely compatible with the storage, shipping and transport times normally provided for the food products in question.

The Applicant, from experimental tests, has found that the meat food product obtainable by the method as described above advantageously has an average sodium nitrate concentration lower than 40 mg per kg of product and a sodium nitrite concentration lower than 10 mg per kg of product.

By way of example, Table 1 shows below some experimental values of concentration of nitrates and sodium nitrites in various samples of beef-based food products resulting from a treatment carried out with the method as described above, drawn up by a laboratory of analysis on behalf of the Applicant.

TABLE 1

According to possible embodiments, which can be combined with all the embodiments described here, downstream of step iv), the sliced and vacuum-packed food product can also be subjected to a high pressure treatment in a hydrostatic pressure chamber, so as to increase further the "shelf life" or commercial life of the food product.

For example, the sliced and packaged food product can be subjected to a high pressure treatment (HHP, High Hydrostatic Pressure or HPP, High Pressure Processing). This high pressure treatment, in fact, achieves a "cold" pasteurization by exploiting the high pressure, since the temperature increase in the matrix that is treated is very low compared to the known hot thermal pasteurization. This advantageously allows, in addition to stabilizing the bacterial load, to maintain the organoleptic properties of the treated food product unaltered.

In particular, during the increase of the hydrostatic pressure, due to the frictional forces that occur due to the friction of the food product molecules, heat develops from the inside of the food product, so as to pasteurize it.

In this phase, the reciprocal sliding of the molecules, aimed at the realization of the equilibrium configuration with the minimum spatial occupation level, generates a temperature increase of about 2/3 ° C every 1000 bar.

Thanks to this it is possible to obtain a pasteurization, in fact "cold" given the very rapid temperature increase of the food product, in times ranging between 100 seconds and 400 seconds, depending on the physical parameters and the type of product food to be treated.

According to possible embodiments, the high pressure treatment can provide for the use of a hydrostatic pressure between 2000 bar and 7000 bar, preferably between 3000 bar and 6000 bar.

According to possible embodiments, the hydrostatic pressure can be chosen according to the type of food product to be treated with the method in accordance with the present invention.

According to possible embodiments, the high pressure treatment can be carried out for a period of time comprised between 200 seconds and 300 seconds, preferably comprised between 220 seconds and 260 seconds. According to possible embodiments, the residence time of the food products in the hydrostatic pressure chamber can also be chosen according to the type of food products to be treated with the method in accordance with the present invention.

By virtue of the hydrostatic effect of the fat matrices distributed within the food product, which create the respective melting points inside the food product, this high pressure treatment is faster and more homogeneous than thermal pasteurization or other heat treatments.

In the known art, this high-pressure treatment is generally not used in the production of food products in vacuum-packed slices because the high pressures would tend to brown the food products.

On the other hand, the Applicant has surprisingly experimentally verified that the concentration of nitrates and sodium nitrite in the food product advantageously allows to counteract the denaturation of proteins caused by high pressure, counteracting the browning effect.

This high pressure treatment, therefore, has the advantage of further increasing the “shelf life” or commercial life of the food product, even beyond 30 days from the date of packaging, without altering the red-pink color of the meat slices.

According to possible embodiments, the high pressure treatment can be applied after the sliced and packaged meat-based food product has changed its color from brown to reddish-red.

However, it is not excluded that the high pressure treatment can be applied before the color of the meat slices has changed from brown to red-pink.

It is clear that modifications and / or additions of parts and / or phases may be made to the method for the production and treatment of a meat-based food product described so far, without thereby departing from the scope of the present invention.

It is also clear that, although the present invention has been described with reference to some specific examples, a person skilled in the art will certainly be able to realize many other equivalent forms of method for the production and treatment of a meat-based food product, having the characteristics expressed in the claims and therefore all falling within the scope of protection defined by them.

Claims (12)

CLAIMS 1. Method for making and treating a meat-based food product, said method comprising the following steps: i) cooking a cut, or portion thereof, of meat; ii) slicing the cut of meat cooked in step i) to obtain thin slices; iii) imbibition of each of said slices obtained in step ii) by means of an aqueous-based solution containing nitrites and / or sodium nitrates; iv) vacuum packing of the slices soaked in phase iii). 2. Method as in claim 1, in which, between said step i) and said step ii), there is provided a step of lowering the temperature of the cooked product in step i). 3. Method as in claim 1 or 2, wherein said aqueous-based solution has a sodium nitrite concentration of between 0.5 g / L and 3 g / L, in particular between 1 g / L and 2.5 g /L. Method as in any one of the preceding claims, wherein said aqueous-based solution further comprises at least one of flavoring, flavor enhancers, stabilizers and / or antioxidants. 5. Method as in any one of the preceding claims, in which said step iii) takes place by completely immersing each of said wafer in said aqueous-based solution. 6. Method as in claim 5, wherein said step iii) provides to completely immerse each slice on a first side, turn and immerse the same slice again from a second side, opposite to the first side. 7. Method as in any one of the preceding claims, wherein said method comprises, downstream of step iii), a dripping step of the slices. 8. Method as in any one of the preceding claims, wherein said method comprises downstream of step iv) a high pressure treatment. 9. Method as in claim 8, in which the high pressure treatment involves the use of hydrostatic pressure between 2000 bar and 7000 bar, in particular between 3000 bar and 6000 bar. 10. Method as in any one of the preceding claims, in which said slices have a thickness of between 0.5 mm and 2 mm. 11. Food product based on meat, vacuum packed in slices obtainable by a method as in any one of claims 1 to 10. 12. Vacuum packaging of a meat-based food product, comprising a vacuum packaging containing one or more thin slices of cooked meat, soaked in an aqueous-based solution containing nitrites and / or sodium nitrates.