JP2012021655A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve a problem wherein when penetration cooking is performed in a general home refrigerator, the penetration cooking at a conventionally high degree of vacuum is difficult in terms of strength, cost and usability and cannot make foodstuff tasty fully, and thus, provide a refrigerator which can easily perform penetration cooking even at home.SOLUTION: In the refrigerator including a refrigerator body having a storage compartment, a low-pressure chamber arranged within the storage compartment and a decompression means decompressing the low-pressure chamber, when liquid and food are put in the low-pressure chamber, inside of the low-pressure chamber is decompressed by the decompression means, to make the air pressure a decompression state of -30 kPA to less than atmospheric pressure. After a predetermined time passes, the pressure comes close to the atmospheric pressure, and the decompression and release of the atmospheric pressure are repeated predetermined times, to make the liquid penetrate through the food.

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerator.

  In recent years, the need for shortening the time for housework has increased. Especially for daily cooking, I am very impressed with the shortening of time in cooking equipment such as a range and a refrigerator and the auxiliary function.

  As one of the common cooking methods at home, there are many stewed dishes in which seasonings are permeated into food. In stewed dishes, if the heat is too strong or overheated, the food cells will be destroyed and boiled, and the taste penetrates from the surface of the food, so the taste penetrates to the center of the food. Since it takes time to do so, it was necessary to boil for a long time on a low heat after boiling the boiling once.

  In addition, dry food has been widely used as a preserved food for a long time. Dried food can be returned in a short time when reconstituted with hot water, but the heat transmitted to the ingredients is sparse and does not return well, or it can boil when boiled. In addition, the dry matter can be made sweeter and more delicious by returning it to the same temperature (low temperature) as the environment in which it lived.

  For example, the amount of guanylic acid as a umami component varies depending on the conditions for returning dried shiitake mushrooms. Guanylic acid is not originally contained but is produced and decomposed by enzymes. Water temperature is closely related to this enzyme reaction. It is necessary to return slowly at a low temperature in order to sufficiently extract the taste.

  Furthermore, it is known that a thing with a slow water absorption rate such as red beans takes about one day to sufficiently absorb water, which is inconvenient for housework. From the above, in order to return dry matter using a refrigerator, it is required to return in a shorter time than before.

  As a refrigerator having a cooking function for assisting the penetration with respect to such a problem, there is Patent Document 1 heretofore. Patent Document 1 discloses that the internal space is degassed in a very short time by depressurizing the inner space of the container to a very low degree of vacuum by a decompression operation, and the liquid component is impregnated in the food in a short time by releasing the decompression operation. Refrigerators that have the function of accelerating penetration.

  Moreover, there exists patent document 2 as a refrigerator which performs a pressure reduction process. Patent Document 2 includes a refrigerator provided with means for adjusting a low oxygen concentration atmosphere by setting the storage room in a weak freezing temperature range of −10 ° C. to −5 ° C. and reducing the pressure in the storage space.

  Moreover, there exists patent document 3 as a method of performing infiltration by pressure reduction. Patent Document 3 is a method in which a liquid component and a gas component are brought into contact with each other after the food is decompressed or in a decompressed state, and the food is impregnated with the liquid component. The food for pickles and boiled foods can be seasoned at high speed. This is an impregnation method for foods effective for food processing on an industrial scale.

JP 2005-351580 A JP 2004-036917 A JP 2003-174850 A

  However, in the refrigerator of Patent Document 1, since the decompressed storage space configured is decompressed by driving the vacuum pump, the storage container and the lid need to have high rigidity to withstand the decompression force.

  In particular, since the storage container has a large area for receiving a decompression force, when the storage container is formed of resin, it is necessary to increase the thickness of the storage container, which reduces the food storage capacity of the storage chamber. There is.

  In addition, when the storage container is formed of a metal such as stainless steel, there is a problem that the storage container becomes an expensive storage container. A high capacity pump is required at a high vacuum level of −95 kPa to −80 kPa, There was a problem that was difficult to achieve with a home refrigerator.

  Furthermore, when the decompression degree is -95 kPa to -80 kPa, the oxygen concentration becomes 10% or less, so when storing live shellfish, prawns, etc., breathing becomes difficult and the freshness of the ingredients drops sharply. When storing a lot of desserts and the like, there is a possibility that the shape may collapse and squeeze, or the sealed bag may burst, and there is a problem that the user's usability is restricted.

  Next, the refrigerator described in Patent Document 2 has a decompression means, but the temperature range is a weak freezing temperature range of −10 ° C. to −5 ° C., so that when the osmotic cooking is performed, the food freezes, thereby causing cell destruction. Causes nutrients to decrease and the texture to go bad. Another problem is that it cannot be eaten without thawing.

  Next, the mechanism of Patent Document 3 is intended to allow the seasoning liquid to instantaneously permeate by releasing the decompression. In some cases, the cells were destroyed and the deliciousness of the material could not be fully utilized.

  When returning dry matter, etc., there is no problem if the purpose is to absorb water and soften it, but the cooling time is short enough to extract the taste of the material such as dry matter by cooling. I could not.

  Then, an object of this invention is to provide the refrigerator which can perform various osmosis | permeation cooking which fully pulled out the flavor of the raw material with the low pressure reduction degree performed with the refrigerator for general households.

  In order to solve the above problems, for example, the configuration described in the claims is adopted. The present invention includes a plurality of means for solving the above-described problems. For example, a refrigerator main body provided with a storage chamber, a low-pressure chamber disposed in the storage chamber, and a decompression pressure reducing the low-pressure chamber. In the refrigerator equipped with the means, when liquid and food are put in the low-pressure chamber, the pressure is reduced when the pressure-reducing means depressurizes the low-pressure chamber and the pressure is reduced from −30 kPa to less than atmospheric pressure, and a predetermined time elapses. Is close to the atmospheric pressure, and the food is allowed to permeate the food by repeatedly depressurizing and releasing the atmospheric pressure a plurality of times.

  According to the present invention, it is an object to provide a refrigerator capable of performing various osmotic cookings that sufficiently draw out the umami of raw materials at a low degree of decompression performed in a refrigerator for home use.

It is a center longitudinal cross-sectional view of the refrigerator which becomes one Embodiment of this invention. It is a cross-sectional perspective view of the lowermost space part of the refrigerator compartment shown in FIG. It is a front view of the back panel of the refrigerator compartment shown in FIG. It is a control block diagram which shows the content of the control in the refrigerator which becomes this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the osmosis | permeation effect by pressure reduction. It is a figure which shows the osmosis | permeation effect by pressure reduction repetition. It is a figure which shows the osmosis | permeation effect by pressure reduction repetition.

  Hereinafter, a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  First, the configuration of the refrigerator will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. 1 is a central longitudinal sectional view of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a sectional perspective view of the lowermost space portion of the refrigerator compartment shown in FIG.

  The refrigerator includes a refrigerator body 1 and a plurality of doors provided on the front surface thereof. The refrigerator main body 1 is composed of a steel plate outer box 11, a resin inner box 12, a foam heat insulating material 13 and / or a vacuum heat insulating material (not shown) filled therebetween. A plurality of storage rooms are formed in the order of the refrigerator compartment 2, the freezer compartment 3, 4 and the vegetable compartment 5 from above. In other words, the refrigerator compartment 2 is arranged at the top and the vegetable compartment 5 is divided and arranged at the bottom, and both the compartments are provided between the refrigerator compartment 2 and the vegetable compartment 5. Freezer compartments 3 and 4 that are thermally partitioned from each other are disposed. The refrigerator compartment 2 and the vegetable compartment 5 are storage compartments in a refrigeration temperature zone, and the freezer compartments 3 and 4 are storage compartments in a freezing temperature zone of 0 ° C. or less (for example, a temperature zone of about −20 ° C. to −18 ° C.). It is. These storage rooms are partitioned by partition walls 34, 35, and 36.

  As described above, doors are provided on the front surface of the refrigerator body 1 in order to close the front openings of the plurality of storage rooms. The refrigerator compartment door 6 is a door that closes the front opening of the refrigerator compartment 2. The freezer compartment door 7 is a door that closes the front opening of the freezer compartment 3. The freezer compartment door 8 is a door that closes the front opening of the freezer compartment 4. The vegetable compartment door 9 is a door that closes the front opening of the vegetable compartment 5. Further, the refrigerator compartment door 6 is constituted by a double door with double doors, and the freezer compartment door 7, the freezer compartment door 8, and the vegetable compartment door 9 are constituted by drawer type doors. The structure is drawn out.

  The refrigerator body 1 having the above-described structure is provided with a refrigeration cycle. The refrigeration cycle includes a compressor 14, a condenser (not shown), a capillary tube (not shown), an evaporator 15, and again a compressor 14 connected in that order. The compressor 14 and the condenser are installed in a machine room provided at the lower back of the refrigerator body 1. The evaporator 15 is installed in a cooler room provided behind the freezing rooms 3 and 4, and a blower fan 16 is installed above the evaporator 15 in the cooler room.

  The cold air cooled by the evaporator 15 is sent to each storage room such as the refrigerator compartment 2, the freezer compartments 3, 4 and the vegetable compartment 5 by the blower fan 16 through a cold air passage (not shown). Specifically, a part of the cold air sent by the blower fan 16 is sent to a storage room in the refrigeration temperature zone of the refrigeration room 2 and the vegetable room 5 via a damper that can be opened and closed. The section is sent to the storage room of the freezing temperature zone of the freezing rooms 3 and 4.

  The cold air sent to the respective storage rooms of the refrigerator compartment 2, the freezer compartments 3, 4 and the vegetable compartment 5 by the blower fan 16 is cooled to the respective storage compartments and then returned to the cooler compartment through the cold air return passage. . Thus, the refrigerator according to the present embodiment has a cold air circulation structure, and maintains each storage room at an appropriate temperature.

  Moreover, in the refrigerator compartment 2, the multistage shelf 17-20 comprised with a transparent resin board is installed so that removal is possible. The lowermost shelf 20 is installed in contact with the back surface and both side surfaces of the inner box 12, and divides the lowermost space 21, which is the lower space, from the upper space. Further, a plurality of door pockets 25 to 27 are installed inside the refrigerator compartment door 6, and these door pockets 25 to 27 protrude into the refrigerator compartment 2 with the refrigerator compartment door 6 being closed. It is provided as follows. A back panel 30 that forms a passage through which the cool air supplied from the blower fan 16 passes is provided on the back of the refrigerator compartment 2.

  In the lowermost space 21, as shown in FIG. 2, in order from the left, an ice making water tank 22 for supplying ice making water to an ice tray in the freezer compartment 3, a storage case 23 for storing food such as dessert, Low pressure chambers 24 are provided for maintaining the freshness of food and storing it for a long period of time by reducing the pressure inside the chamber. The low-pressure chamber 24 has a width that is narrower than the width of the refrigerator compartment 2, and is disposed adjacent to the side surface of the refrigerator compartment 2. The low-pressure chamber 24 is hermetically surrounded by walls and doors, so that the internal atmospheric pressure can be reduced from the outside.

  The ice making water tank 22 and the storage case 23 are arranged behind the refrigerator compartment door 6 (see FIG. 1) on the left side of FIG. Thereby, the ice making water tank 22 and the storage case 23 can be pulled out only by opening the left refrigerator compartment door 6. The ice-making water tank 22 and the storage case 23 are located behind the lowermost door pocket 27 of the refrigerator compartment door 6 in FIG. 1, and the low-pressure chamber 24 is also located in the refrigerator compartment door 6. It will be located behind the lowermost door pocket 27.

  Next, details of the rear panel 30 shown in FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The rear panel 30 includes a cold air discharge port 31 (first cold air discharge port) for cooling the cold room for supplying cold air to the refrigerating chamber 2, and a low pressure chamber cooling for supplying cold air to the lowermost space 21 of the cold room 2. A cold air discharge port 32 (second cold air discharge port) and a cold air return port 33 are provided. The cold air return port 33 is provided on the back side of the low pressure chamber 24 on the side close to the side surface of the refrigerator compartment 2.

  The cool air discharge port 32 is provided toward the gap between the upper surface of the low-pressure chamber 24 and the lower surface of the shelf 20. The cold air discharged from the cold air discharge port 32 flows through a gap between the upper surface of the low-pressure chamber 24 and the lower surface of the shelf 20, and cools the low-pressure chamber 24 from the upper surface. Accordingly, the inside of the low pressure chamber 24 is indirectly cooled.

  A damper device 41 (see FIG. 1) for controlling the flow of cold air into the low pressure chamber 24 is provided upstream of the cold air discharge port 32. The opening and closing of the damper device 41 is controlled by a control device (not shown), and thereby the amount of cold air supplied to the low pressure chamber 24 is controlled.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1, for example, a heater 43 is provided to increase the temperature in the low-pressure chamber 24. The heater 43 is provided on the lower surface of the food tray 60 in the low-pressure chamber 24. In this example, the heater 43 has a substantially same area as the bottom surface in the low-pressure chamber 24.

  Here, the low pressure chamber 24 is disposed close to the right side surface of the refrigeration chamber 2 to eliminate the gap on the right side of the low pressure chamber 24, and a shelf (partition wall) (not shown) is provided at the left end of the upper surface of the low pressure chamber 24. Since the gap on the left side of the low pressure chamber 24 is eliminated, the cold air discharged from the cold air discharge port 32 flows on the upper surface of the low pressure chamber 24 without being diverted to the left and right sides of the low pressure chamber 24.

  Thus, the inside of the low pressure chamber 24 can be cooled quickly by increasing the amount of cool air that cools the upper surface of the low pressure chamber 24. The cool air that has cooled the upper surface of the low pressure chamber 24 is sucked into the cool air return port 33 from the front of the low pressure chamber 24 through the left side surface of the low pressure chamber 24, and returned to the cooler chamber through the cool air return passage. Since the cold air return port 33 is provided on the rear side of the low pressure chamber 24 and on the side close to the side surface of the refrigerator compartment 2, the cold air comes into contact with the rear surface and the left side surface of the low pressure chamber 24 to cool it.

  In this way, the low pressure chamber 24 is indirectly cooled by the cold air passing through the outside. Therefore, by suppressing the convection of the cold air in the low-pressure chamber 24 and performing indirect cooling in the sealed container, the influence of the compressor on / off, and the temperature rise such as opening / closing of the refrigerator compartment door 6 and defrosting, etc. On the other hand, the adverse effect on the internal temperature can be suppressed, and a constant temperature and high humidity state can be maintained. The cold air that has cooled the entire refrigerator compartment 2 is also sucked into the cold air return port 33.

  An ice making water pump 28 is installed behind the ice making water tank 22. A negative pressure pump 29, which is an example of a decompression device for decompressing the low pressure chamber 24, is disposed behind the storage case 23 and in a space behind the low pressure chamber 24. The negative pressure pump 29 is in contact with a pump connection portion provided on the side surface of the low pressure chamber 24 via a conduit.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 2, the low pressure chamber 24 includes a box-shaped low pressure chamber main body 40 having an opening for taking in and out food (a food taking in and out opening), and an opening for food in and out of the low pressure chamber main body 40. A low-pressure chamber door 50 that opens and closes, and a food tray 60 that accommodates food in the interior and passes the low-pressure chamber door 50 into and out of the low-pressure chamber are configured. That is, in the low-pressure chamber main body 40, the space surrounded by the low-pressure chamber main body 40 and the low-pressure chamber door 50 is formed as a low-pressure space that is depressurized by closing the food loading / unloading opening of the low-pressure chamber door 50. The food tray 60 is attached to the back side of the low pressure chamber door 50 and can be moved back and forth as the low pressure chamber door 50 moves.

  The low pressure chamber 24 is placed in a closed state by placing food on the food tray 60 and closing the low pressure chamber door 50. Further, the door switch is turned on and the negative pressure pump 29 is driven, and the low pressure chamber 29 is driven. 24 is depressurized to a state lower than atmospheric pressure. As a result, the air in the food stored in the low pressure chamber 24 expands and is discharged, and when the decompression is released, the air in the food contracts and the liquid component penetrates.

  Further, by pulling the low-pressure chamber door 50 forward, a pressure release valve provided in a part of the low-pressure chamber door 50 is operated to release the pressure-reduced state of the low-pressure chamber 24, resulting in an atmospheric pressure state. . The low pressure chamber door 50 can be opened. As a result, the low pressure chamber door 50 can be easily opened and food can be taken in and out.

  Here, when osmotic cooking is performed in a general household refrigerator, if a low pressure of about −50 kPa is used, it is necessary to increase the size of the decompression device and increase the pressure resistance of the casing that constitutes the low pressure chamber. Decrease and cost increase. Therefore, it is necessary to produce a certain penetration effect while lowering the degree of decompression to increase food storage space and reduce costs. The low-pressure chamber 24 of the present embodiment has a structure in which the pressure approaches atmospheric pressure in a few hours, and when the pressure approaches atmospheric pressure, the pressure is reduced again using pump control to promote infiltration.

  Furthermore, in order to improve the usability of the low-pressure chamber 24, the operation panel for osmotic cooking is arranged on the outer surface of the refrigerator compartment door 6, so that the user can easily open the temperature adjusting unit 44 (without opening the refrigerator compartment door 6). Through seeing FIG. 4), it is possible to quickly perform osmotic cooking at various temperature zones. At the time of operation, it is possible to notify the user of the progress of the penetration cooking by switching the position of the light to be lit.

  That is, when it is desired to shorten the permeation time, the mode can be set to repeatedly perform depressurization and depressurization by pressing the permeation button installed in the refrigerator compartment door 6. When this mode is used, when the predetermined time elapses, the decompression repetition mode is canceled, and a sound or light notifying the user that the permeation has ended is notified.

  As the depressurization canceling means, an electromagnetic valve (not shown) is provided in the low pressure chamber 24 to cancel the depressurization, air is introduced into the low pressure chamber, and the pressure after the release is controlled to return to the atmospheric pressure. The solenoid valve is opened and closed by time control.

  In addition, the decompression release time is desirably performed every 10 to 30 minutes in consideration of the penetration of the seasoning liquid into the food and the life of the vacuum pump. Desirably, the permeation rate can be increased by performing depressurization and depressurization at intervals of 10 minutes.

  More specifically, after a certain period of time has elapsed from the start of pressure reduction (10 minutes in this embodiment), air is introduced by opening the solenoid valve, and when the low pressure chamber 24 approaches atmospheric pressure, the solenoid valve is closed. Then, air is made to flow in by opening a solenoid valve again 10 minutes after starting pressure reduction with a vacuum pump. By repeating this series of decompression and decompression release operations, the penetration effect of the food is promoted.

  After the osmotic cooking is completed, the seasoning liquid and water sufficiently permeate the ingredients, and cooking can be performed immediately. By performing the soaking process or the like in advance, cooking in which the taste penetrates to the center of the ingredients can be made in a short time compared to the conventional soaking process. In addition, the water reconstitution of the dry matter is not abrupt in the refrigerated temperature range, and it is possible to sufficiently extract the taste of the dry matter by allowing the moisture to permeate slowly.

  In addition, when the low pressure chamber is not intended for osmotic cooking, reducing the pressure reduces the oxygen concentration, making it an optimal chamber for storing vegetables and meat fish. However, depending on the foodstuff, the freshness may be reduced in a low oxygen state, and the harmful effect of bursting due to decompression may be considered.

  Here, clams such as clams and shijimi usually live with their shells closed by muscles called scallops. If you put it in boiling water, the power of the scallops closing the shells will weaken and the shells will open. This is a case of dying healthy, and shellfish that died due to illness, etc. will be rigid after death and die with the shell closed tightly.

  Therefore, boiled shellfish using a live clam, and when the shell opens, it is considered “live”, and when the shell remains closed, it is “dead”. It was decided to evaluate.

  For comparison, the low-pressure chamber was adjusted to 1 ° C. at each degree of reduced pressure (−70 kPa, −50 kPa, −30 kPa) and stored for 2 days to determine whether it was alive or dead.

  In a state with a high degree of vacuum (−70 kPa), shellfish that were killed by cell membrane destruction during storage were observed. Further, at (−70 kPa), since there are some shells with small openings, it is considered that freshness tends to deteriorate due to high vacuum (−50 kPa). In the above, it can be said that the effect on the live food is low even under reduced pressure, but the cell membrane destruction force due to reduced pressure increases as the degree of vacuum increases, so it is considered safer to store at (−30 kPa).

  Therefore, taking into account the increase in food storage space and cost reduction, the possibility of microorganisms invading (death) due to the destruction of the cell membrane of living vegetation due to decompression, the harmful effects on other foods due to the expansion of the stored food during decompression, etc. Thus, the pressure during decompression of the low pressure chamber was set to −30 kPa or less.

  Next, the relationship with the freezing temperature by food will be described. The presence or absence of freezing when the food was put in an ice temperature temperature zone (−1 ° C.), a chilled temperature zone (1 ° C.), or a refrigeration temperature zone (5 ° C.) was confirmed. As the food, dried shiitake mushrooms, simmered kono tofu, pickled radish with sweet and sour marinade, marinated tomato onion, pickled bonito. The salt concentration is high in the order of pickles of salmon> marinated octopus> pickles of radish> thinly boiled> return of dried food.

  Freezing was not observed in all foods after 6 hours had passed since the above foods were stored under reduced pressure in each temperature zone, but after 10 hours, boiled foods with a lot of broth and low concentration, Freezing was seen in the return of dried shiitake mushrooms that used a lot of water.

  Other foods were stored for 3 days continuously, but no freezing was observed. This is due to the freezing point depression due to the difference in concentration, and it is considered that a product having a high concentration has a lower freezing temperature and a product having a lower concentration has a higher freezing temperature.

  From the above, it is necessary to set the temperature to the ice temperature for meat and fish that are seasoned with the seasoning liquid, and to set the chilled temperature for meat, fish and vegetables that are seasoned with a lot of moisture.

  Examples of cooking suitable for ice temperature penetration include deep-fried chicken that needs to be seasoned, grilled meat, spare ribs, teriyaki, and pickled meat and fish. For these, it is preferable to select an infiltration mode at an ice temperature.

  Examples of osmotic cooking in the chilled temperature range include boiled eggs that take time to season with boiled foods, and the return of dried foods such as fruit compotes and shiitake mushrooms. For these, the penetration mode at the chilled temperature may be selected.

  In addition, when meat and vegetables are osmotically cooked at the same time, it is desirable to store them by switching to a chilled temperature range in consideration of the effects of freezing.

  Next, the temperature switching control means in the refrigerator of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a control block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the control means of the refrigerator according to the present embodiment. Depending on the ingredients and applications stored in the low-pressure chamber 24 by switching the temperature, it is possible to select the temperature and perform osmotic cooking.

  In FIG. 4, for example, the control device 45 constituted by a microcomputer or the like is between the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 42 that detects the internal temperature of the low-pressure chamber 24, and between the ice temperature temperature range and the chilled temperature range. The temperature set by the temperature control unit 44 whose temperature can be switched is used as an input, and control signals to the damper device 41 and the heater 43 are output based on those temperatures.

  More specifically, when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 42 is low, the amount of cold air is controlled (suppressed) by decreasing the opening degree of the damper device 41 or by closing it completely. When the temperature becomes too low, the heater 43 is energized to increase the temperature. When the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 42 is too high, the opening degree of the damper device 41 is increased, so that cool air is supplied to the cool air circulation space in the low pressure chamber 24 to lower the temperature in the low pressure chamber 24.

  From the above, it is possible to perform osmotic cooking of food by switching the temperature zone according to the type of food.

  Here, the water absorption characteristics of the dry matter by the decompression method will be described. We decided to use cypress (Kano) used daily for various dishes such as salads and croquettes. In general, the method of returning hinoki is a method of immersing it in water, and the return rate for long hinoki is about 4 to 5 times.

  The sample is stored for 30 minutes by adding 5 times the amount of 10 (g) water to 2 (g) long cypress in a food storage container. FIG. 5 shows a result of measuring the water absorption of hijiki in a curve, with the vertical axis representing the return rate [times] and the horizontal axis representing the water immersion time (hours).

  In this study, it was decided to confirm the penetration promotion effect by reduced pressure and the effect of repeated pressure reduction and decompression operation. When the decompression and decompression release are repeated, the decompression release is performed once every 10 minutes in consideration of the penetration time of the seasoning liquid, and then the decompression is performed immediately thereafter.

  FIG. 5 shows the relationship between the return rate 51 when the decompression and decompression release operations are repeated in the low-pressure chamber, the return rate 52 when the low-pressure chamber is decompressed at a constant pressure, and the return rate 53 in the atmospheric pressure state. Has been.

  FIG. 5 shows that the time taken for the hijiki to return to 4 times is compared. The return rate 51 when the decompression and the decompression release operation are repeated in the low pressure chamber is 23 minutes, and the return when the low pressure chamber is decompressed at a constant pressure. The rate 52 was 27 minutes, the return rate 53 in the atmospheric pressure state, and the return rate 53 in the atmospheric pressure state was 34.

  That is, it can be seen that returning the elbow under reduced pressure increases the amount of water absorption and shortens the water immersion time. Even when the pressure is reduced, it can be said that the permeation effect is higher when the pressure reduction and the pressure release are repeated a plurality of times.

  Moreover, when it is made to infiltrate in a reduced pressure state, water is gradually infiltrated while cooling in a reduced pressure state, so that the water absorption of hijiki becomes uniform, the uneven cooking is suppressed, and it can be boiled quickly and plumply.

  Similarly, the penetration effect was confirmed using radish. The radishes were peeled evenly to a thickness of 1 mm, and then adjusted to a size of 60 mm in diameter and 10 mm in height. As the dipping conditions, the case where the food coloring liquid was put into the food at half the height and dipped, and the case where the whole food was dipped were examined. The immersion time was 2 hours.

  For comparison, a comparison was made between a case where pressure reduction and decompression release operations were repeated in the low pressure chamber, a case where the low pressure chamber was depressurized at a constant pressure, and a product under atmospheric pressure. For the penetration effect, the radish was cut in half after storage, and the penetration area was measured. For the penetration effect, the radish was cut in half after storage, and the penetration area was measured.

  The result at the time of immersing the food coloring liquid to half of the food is shown in FIG. In FIG. 6, when the reddish liquid is immersed in half of the food in the low-pressure chamber and the decompression and decompression operation is repeated (permeation 54 from the center, vertical permeation 57), the red food is half of the food in the low-pressure chamber. And soaked up to half of the food at atmospheric pressure (infiltration 56 from the center, longitudinal infiltration 56) Penetration 59) is shown.

  Under any condition, there was almost no penetration into the food, and there was no significant difference in penetration depending on the conditions.

  Moreover, the result at the time of making it soaked so that a food coloring liquid may be covered with a foodstuff is shown in FIG. In FIG. 7, when the reddish liquid is completely immersed in the food in the low pressure chamber and the decompression and release operation is repeated (permeation 60 from the center, vertical penetration 63), the red food is completely immersed in the food in the low pressure chamber. When the pressure is reduced at a constant pressure (permeation 61 from the center, permeation 64 in the vertical direction), when the red food liquid is completely immersed in the food at atmospheric pressure (permeation 62 from the center, permeation 65 in the vertical direction). Indicates.

  When the decompression and decompression release operations are repeated in the low-pressure chamber, it can be seen that the permeation 60 from the center is completely permeated as 10 mm in the longitudinal direction 63 in the range of 45 mm. When the low-pressure chamber is decompressed at a constant pressure, it can be seen that the permeation 61 from the center is completely permeated as 10 mm in the longitudinal direction 64 in the range of 35 mm. In the atmospheric pressure state, the penetration 62 from the center was in the range of 10 mm, the penetration 65 in the longitudinal direction was 3 mm, and only a part of the penetration was seen.

  From the results of FIGS. 6 and 7, it can be said that the condition where the penetration effect is seen is a state where the whole food is immersed in the seasoning liquid, and it is difficult to obtain the effect when the food is half immersed in the seasoning liquid. This is because the seasoning liquid permeates into the void that is evacuated when the air is degassed at the time of decompression, and the permeation is not performed if there is no seasoning liquid around the food.

  From the above, it can be said that when the seasoning liquid is entangled with the whole food, or the whole food is immersed in the seasoning liquid, and when this condition is satisfied, the permeation is performed earlier when the pressure is reduced. Moreover, when performing pressure reduction, it can be said that the permeation effect can be enhanced even by a low degree of pressure reduction by repeating the pressure reduction and the pressure reduction release several times.

  Next, details of the mounting positions of the check valve (not shown) and the electromagnetic valve (not shown) will be described. Here, as described above, the food tray 60 is effective in terms of usability, but there is also a drawback that the internal volume for storing food is reduced, so the food tray 60 is not always present. Therefore, an experiment was conducted without the food tray 60, and the mounting positions of the check valve and the electromagnetic valve were determined as follows.

  In the low-pressure chamber, seasoning liquid or the like may be spilled when performing osmotic cooking, or condensed water may be generated due to uneven temperature distribution. On the other hand, when there are few stored items in the refrigerator, drying proceeds on the contrary, and spilled juice and food waste may be dried and remain as a fine solid. If such a liquid or solid contaminates the air inlet / outlet or the inside of the check valve or solenoid valve, the function as the check valve or solenoid valve cannot be exhibited. Therefore, it is necessary to install the check valve and the solenoid valve in a place where such liquid and solid do not enter.

  First, as shown in FIG. 1, a shelf 20 that partitions the refrigerator compartment is positioned above the low-pressure chamber 24, and is used as a place where food is placed. Therefore, if a check valve or a solenoid valve is attached, it may be an obstacle to put food, and the food may block the check valve or solenoid valve. Therefore, the ceiling surface of the low pressure chamber 24 is not suitable as a check valve mounting position.

  In addition, since the bottom surface of the low pressure chamber 24 may spill seasoning liquid or the like when the food is taken out by osmotic cooking, it is not appropriate to install a check valve or a solenoid valve on the bottom surface of the low pressure chamber 24.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the low pressure chamber 24 is indirectly cooled by the cold air from the cold air discharge ports 32 installed on the back surface of the refrigerating chamber 2 flowing around the low pressure chamber 24. As a result, moisture evaporating from the food is prevented from escaping out of the low-pressure chamber 24, and drying can be prevented. However, since the cold air discharge port 32 does not come out from the entire periphery of the low pressure chamber 24, the heat of the cold air and the low pressure chamber 24 is replaced, and a temperature distribution is generated in the cold air flowing around the low pressure chamber 24. Thereby, when many foods are stored, dew condensation may occur and water droplets may be generated on the inner wall of the low pressure chamber 24. When such condensed water adheres to the check valve or the electromagnetic valve or is generated in the vicinity, the pressure of the packing is suppressed simultaneously with the contraction of the packing that suppresses the movement of gas between the low pressure chamber body 40 and the low pressure chamber door 50. Condensed water is discharged from the check valve and solenoid valve together with the indoor air. As a result, the check valve and the solenoid valve become wet, and the function as the check valve and the solenoid valve is impaired. Then, the place where condensed water did not adhere was found by the following examination.

  The test load described in JIS C 9801 8.2, which closes the internal volume of 80%, is put in a sealed container that looks like the low-pressure chamber 24, and the sealed container is placed in the vicinity of the cold air discharge port. And measured the relationship. The test load described above has a moisture content of 76% and a thermal characteristic almost identical to that of red beef.

  As a result of the experiment, it was found that condensation was generated in a circle corresponding to ¼ of the outer circumference from the container wall surface closest to the cold air outlet. It was also found that when there are two or more cold air outlets and the distance from the container wall surface is different, it is generated in a circle corresponding to 1/4 of the outer circumference of the nearest container wall surface from the cold air outlet nearest to the container.

  From the above results, the position of the check valve and solenoid valve is measured from the discharge port closest to the low pressure chamber 24 at a height of 1/3 or less from the bottom surface of the low pressure chamber, considering that the drip spills on the bottom surface. It has been found that the check valve and the solenoid valve are contaminated with drip and condensed water when the pressure is within 1/4 of the outer circumference from the side surface of the closest low pressure chamber 24.

  For the above reasons, the check valve and the solenoid valve are attached at the position where the low-pressure chamber 24 is not more than 1/3 of the side of the low-pressure chamber 24 excluding the ceiling and the bottom, and the cold air outlet closest to the low-pressure chamber 24. The portion excluding within 1/4 of the outer periphery from the side surface of the closest low pressure chamber 24 is appropriate.

  As in the above-described embodiment, in the refrigerator-freezer provided with a refrigerator-freezer main body having a plurality of storage chambers, a low-pressure chamber disposed in the storage chamber, and a decompression means for decompressing the low-pressure chamber, the low-pressure chamber 24 is a predetermined chamber. Since the structure has a structure in which the pressure approaches atmospheric pressure as time passes, it is possible to easily perform osmotic cooking even in a refrigerator in a general household.

  Furthermore, after putting a liquid such as seasoning liquid and food into the low pressure chamber 24, the pressure inside the low pressure chamber is reduced by a pressure reducing means, the pressure is reduced from -30 kPa to less than atmospheric pressure, and the pressure reduction and release of the atmospheric pressure are performed multiple times. By repeating, it becomes possible to infiltrate the seasoning liquid and the like faster in the food.

  Further, as a decompression release means, an electromagnetic valve is provided in the low-pressure chamber 24 to release the decompression, and air is flown into the low-pressure chamber 24, and the pressure after the release is controlled to return to the atmospheric pressure. It is possible to repeat the operation.

  Furthermore, as the depressurization release time, the depressurization release and the depressurization are repeated a plurality of times every 10 to 30 minutes, so that the seasoning liquid can be sufficiently infiltrated into the food.

  Furthermore, if the check valve and solenoid valve are installed on the side of the low-pressure chamber, if the air inlet / outlet of the check valve or solenoid valve is contaminated with liquid or solid, the check valve or solenoid valve It can be suppressed that the function cannot be exhibited.

  Further, the low pressure chamber 24 is switched between an ice temperature temperature zone and the chilled temperature zone by controlling the operation of a damper device provided in a part of the cold air passage, so that it matches the food to be cooked. Osmotic cooking at temperature is possible.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Refrigerator main body 2 Refrigeration room 3, 4 Freezing room 5 Vegetable room 6 Refrigeration room door 7, 8 Freezing room door 9 Vegetable room door 11 Outer box 12 Inner box 13 Foam insulation 14 Compressor 15 Evaporator 16 Blowers 17-20 Shelf 21 Lowermost space 22 Ice making water tank 23 Storage case 24 Low pressure chamber 25 to 27 Door pocket 28 Ice making water pump 29 Negative pressure pump 30 Rear panel 31 First cold air outlet 32 Second cold air outlet 33 Cold air return port 34 ~ 36 Partition wall 37 Cold air return passage 40 Low pressure chamber body 41 Damper device 42 Temperature sensor 43 Heater 44 Temperature adjusting unit 45 Control device 50 Low pressure chamber door 51 Return rate 52 when the decompression and decompression release operations are repeated 52 Return rate 53 when depressurized by pressure Return rate 60 at atmospheric pressure Food tray

Claims (6)

In a refrigerator provided with a refrigerator body, a low-pressure chamber disposed in the storage chamber, and a decompression means for decompressing the low-pressure chamber,
When liquid and food are put into the low-pressure chamber, the pressure-reducing means depressurizes the low-pressure chamber, the pressure is reduced from −30 kPa to less than atmospheric pressure, and the pressure approaches atmospheric pressure when a predetermined time elapses. And the atmospheric pressure release is repeated a plurality of times to allow the liquid to penetrate into the food.   2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the liquid is infiltrated into the food by repeating decompression release and decompression a plurality of times every 5 to 60 minutes.   The decompression means is a negative pressure pump provided in the storage chamber, and a part of the air in the low pressure chamber is removed by the suction action of the negative pressure pump to control the atmospheric pressure in the low pressure chamber, The refrigerator according to claim 1.   An electromagnetic valve is provided in the low-pressure chamber, and the electromagnetic valve controls air pressure to be released by releasing air into the low-pressure chamber and returning the pressure after releasing the pressure reduction to atmospheric pressure. The refrigerator according to 1.   The refrigerator according to claim 4, wherein the electromagnetic valve is provided on a side surface having a height of 1/3 or less from a bottom surface of the low-pressure chamber.   The refrigerator according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the low-pressure chamber switches between an ice temperature temperature zone and a chilled temperature zone.

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