JP2012157642A - Steaming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a steaming apparatus for heating foodstuffs 5 housed in a treatment tank 1 with saturated steam in which the condition of foodstuffs is detected and appropriate stirring is reliably performed.SOLUTION: The steaming apparatus for heating foodstuffs 5 by introducing saturated steam in the treatment tank 1 housing boiled foodstuffs, performs stirring under reduced pressure where pressure in the treatment tank is temporarily made lower than the pressure of the saturated steam at a steaming temperature during a steaming process where the foodstuffs are cooked. The steaming apparatus includes an upper part temperature sensor 14 for detecting the temperature of the upper part inside the foodstuff, and a lower part temperature sensor 15 for detecting temperature of the lower part inside the foodstuff. An operation controller 13 detects a difference in temperature between an upper part and a lower part inside the foodstuffs during the steaming process, and when the difference in temperature is larger than a prescribed value, the stirring under reduced pressure is performed.

Description

  TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a steaming apparatus that cooks boiled food by heating the broth and ingredients for boiled food contained in a treatment tank with saturated steam.

  There is a steaming device that heats food by storing the food in a treatment tank and supplying saturated steam into the treatment tank. When this steaming apparatus contains boiled broth and ingredients for boiled food and is heated, the boiled food can be cooked. However, this steaming apparatus has a problem that it is difficult to stir the food because the inside of the treatment tank is sealed to supply steam. Therefore, Japanese Patent No. 4581846 proposes stirring by changing the pressure in the treatment tank. When steam is discharged from the inside of the processing tank filled with saturated steam and the pressure in the processing tank is reduced, the saturated steam pressure in the food material portion is higher than the saturated steam pressure in the processing tank. In that case, it will boil violently in the broth portion, and thereby the ingredients can be stirred. If this invention is used, even if it is a steaming device without a stirring device, it will be possible to stir during the cooking of the simmered food. Therefore, it is inefficient to stir unnecessarily, and if the stirring is excessive, the foodstuff collapses and the commercial value is lowered. On the other hand, if the stirring is insufficient, the temperature of the food will vary, and in this case as well, the commercial value will be reduced. Therefore, it is necessary to perform stirring at an appropriate time, but the timing of stirring cannot be determined from the outside, and stirring may be excessively performed, or conversely, stirring may be insufficient. There was a problem.

Japanese Patent No. 4581846

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is to detect the state of ingredients and ensure proper stirring in a steaming apparatus in which the ingredients for boiled juice and simmered food contained in the treatment tank are heated by saturated steam. An object of the present invention is to provide a steaming apparatus which can be used.

  The invention described in claim 1 is a processing tank capable of pressurizing the inside, a steam supply control means for controlling supply of steam into the processing tank, an exhaust control valve for controlling discharge of steam from the processing tank, and a processing tank An operation control device for controlling the operation of the steam supply control means and the exhaust control valve based on the temperature or pressure in the container, containing the ingredients for boiled food made of solid ingredients and liquid broth in the treatment tank, and the treatment tank It is a steaming device that heats ingredients by introducing saturated steam therein, and the pressure in the processing tank is adjusted during the cooking process in which the ingredients are heated by maintaining the inside of the processing tank at a predetermined cooking temperature. In the steaming device that allows the vacuum stirring operation to boil the food and stir the food by temporarily lowering the saturated steam pressure at the steaming temperature, the food in the treatment tank contains , The temperature inside the ingredients The upper part temperature sensor to detect and the lower part temperature sensor to detect the temperature in the lower part of the food are provided, and the temperature difference between the upper part and the lower part in the food is detected. A temperature difference between the lower portion and the lower portion is detected, and when the temperature difference becomes larger than a predetermined value, a vacuum stirring operation is performed.

  The invention according to claim 2 is characterized in that, in the steaming device, the operation control device detects the end time of the decompression based on the temperature difference between the upper and lower portions in the food during the decompression stirring operation.

  In a state where the ingredients are not agitated, temperature variations occur in the ingredients. Therefore, it is possible to determine whether or not stirring is necessary by detecting the variation in the temperature of the food. If the temperature difference in the food becomes large, stirring is performed if the stirring is performed. It is possible to prevent excessive or insufficient stirring. In addition, if it is detected that the variation in the temperature of the ingredients has been eliminated due to the stirring, the stirring under reduced pressure can be terminated to ensure proper stirring without causing the ingredients to be stirred or excessively stirring. Can be done.

Flow diagram of steaming apparatus in one embodiment of the present invention Explanatory drawing of the temperature and pressure change in the processing tank in one Example of this invention Explanatory drawing of temperature change in foodstuff in one Example of this invention

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a flow of a steaming apparatus embodying the present invention. The steaming apparatus accommodates the food 5 in a cylindrical processing tank 1 placed horizontally, and heats the food 5 by introducing steam into the processing tank 1. A door 2 is provided on one side of the processing tank 1, the food 5 is put in and out of the processing tank 1 by opening the door 2, and the processing tank 1 is sealed by closing the door 2. The food 5 is placed on the cart 3 in a state where it is put in the food container 4, and is accommodated in the processing tank 1 by pushing the cart 3 into the processing tank 1. A steam supply path 6 for supplying steam into the processing tank 1 is connected to the bottom of the processing tank 1, and the amount of steam supplied to the processing tank 1 is controlled in the middle of the steam supply path 6. Steam supply control means 7 is provided. The steam supply control means 7 is preferably capable of increasing or decreasing the steam supply amount. For example, the steam supply amount can be adjusted by combining a plurality of valves having different diameters. A drainage path 10 for discharging water from the processing tank 1 is provided at the bottom of the processing tank 1, and the steam supply path 6 is also connected to the drainage path 10. The steam is condensed so that the drainage path 10 is provided to return to the liquid. However, the steam is not leaked from the drainage path 10 by closing the drainage path 10 during cooking.

  An exhaust path 8 for discharging air and steam in the processing tank 1 is connected to the upper part of the processing tank 1, and an exhaust control valve 9 is provided in the middle of the exhaust path 8. The operation control device 13 controls the operation of supplying steam into the processing tank 1 and depressurizing the processing tank 1. The operation control device 13 detects the pressure in the processing tank 1 through the pressure detection device 11 that detects the pressure in the processing tank 1, and the temperature in the processing tank 1 through the temperature detection device 12 that detects the temperature in the processing tank 1. The steam is supplied and discharged based on the pressure and temperature in the processing tank 1. A product temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the food 5 is provided, and the temperature detected by the product temperature sensor is also sent to the operation control device 13. The product temperature sensor includes an upper component temperature sensor 14 that detects the product temperature in the upper part of the food material and a lower component temperature sensor 15 that detects the product temperature in the lower part of the food material. Based on the difference in temperature detected by the lower part temperature sensor 15, the start timing and end timing of the reduced pressure stirring are detected.

  The steaming process will be described. The ingredients to be cooked in the present embodiment are boiled dishes in which solid ingredients and liquid soup are cooked, and ingredients consisting of ingredients and soup are placed in the ingredients container 4. The food container 4 containing the food is placed on the carriage 3, and the door 2 of the processing tank 1 is opened and the entire carriage 3 is accommodated in the processing tank 1. After the carriage 3 is accommodated, the door 2 is closed to seal the inside of the processing tank 1. The door 2 is fixed by a clutch ring so that the door does not open even if the pressure in the processing tank 1 rises. In the temperature raising step for raising the temperature in the processing tank 1, the steam supply control means 7 is first opened with the exhaust control valve 9 opened, and steam is supplied. The inside of the initial treatment tank 1 is filled with air, and if there is air, the heating of the food 5 becomes an obstacle, so the air in the treatment tank 1 is vaporized by exhausting through the exhaust path 8 while supplying the steam. Replace with. When the temperature in the processing tank 1 detected by the temperature detection device 12 rises to a predetermined temperature for stopping the exhaust, the operation control device 13 closes the exhaust control valve 9 and further supplies steam so that the temperature in the processing tank 1 is increased. And increase the pressure. By supplying steam into the processing tank 1 in a sealed state, the temperature and pressure in the processing tank 1 rise, and when the temperature in the processing tank 1 reaches the cooking temperature (for example, 120 ° C.), the heating process is changed to the cooking process. On the other hand, the operation control device 13 supplies steam so as to maintain the cooking temperature.

  In normal cooking, the cooking temperature is maintained until a predetermined cooking time has elapsed. When the cooking time is over, the supply of steam is stopped, the steam in the processing tank 1 is discharged, the door 2 is opened after the inside of the processing tank 1 returns to atmospheric pressure, and the cooked food is processed into the processing tank. Remove from 1 However, in the present invention, the cooking liquid is boiled by changing the pressure in the treatment tank 1 during the cooking process, and the ingredients are stirred.

  FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing changes in temperature and pressure in the treatment tank when a vacuum stirring operation is performed during the cooking process, and FIG. 3 is a temperature change in the foodstuff when the vacuum stirring operation is performed during the cooking process. It is explanatory drawing which showed the condition. The operation control device 13 during the cooking process controls the steam supply control means 7 so as to keep the temperature in the treatment tank 1 detected by the temperature detection device 12 at 120 ° C. of the cooking temperature, A temperature difference detected by the lower part temperature sensor 15 is detected in advance. The operation control device 13 starts the operation of stirring under reduced pressure when the temperature difference between the upper and lower portions in the food becomes larger than a predetermined value. When entering the reduced pressure stirring process, the operation control device 13 reduces the pressure toward the lower limit pressure value (for example, 0.07 MPa) at the time of the reduced pressure stirring set to a value lower than the saturated steam pressure value at the cooking temperature. 9 is performed. When the cooking temperature is 120 ° C., the saturated steam pressure value at 120 ° C. is 0.10 MPa, so the pressure in the treatment tank 1 during cooking is 0.10 MPa. When the exhaust control valve 9 is opened in this state, the steam in the processing tank 1 is exhausted through the exhaust path 8, and the pressure in the processing tank 1 decreases.

  When steam is discharged from the processing tank 1, the pressure and temperature in the processing tank 1 decrease in a short time, but the temperature change of the food 5 is slower than the pressure change in the processing tank, so that a temperature difference occurs. If the saturated vapor pressure in the food part determined from the temperature of the food 5 is higher than the saturated vapor pressure in the treatment tank determined from the temperature in the treatment tank 1, boiling occurs inside the food. If boiling occurs, stirring occurs due to rising bubbles in the food, and the temperature of the food becomes uniform by stirring the food. Therefore, the difference in the temperature of the food detected by the upper component temperature sensor 14 and the lower component temperature sensor 15 is detected. Becomes smaller.

  In FIG. 3, the temperature of the processing tank and the food material before the vacuum stirring, the temperature of the processing tank and the food material during the vacuum stirring, the temperature of the processing tank after the vacuum stirring and the temperature of the food material are sequentially described. When stirring is not performed, temperature unevenness may occur inside the food. In the figure, the upper part of the food is 120.0 ° C., but the lower part of the food is 119.6 ° C. The operation control device 13 detects that the temperature difference between the upper and lower portions in the food is greater than a predetermined value, and starts the operation of stirring under reduced pressure.

  In this state, when steam is discharged from the processing tank and the pressure in the processing tank is reduced to 0.08 MPa, the temperature in the processing tank 1 becomes 116 ° C., which is the saturation temperature at 0.08 MPa. However, the temperature change in the food part is slower than the steam part in the treatment tank. Therefore, the temperature of the food part will be higher than 116 ° C. of the temperature in the treatment tank, and when the saturated vapor pressure in the food part becomes higher than the saturated vapor pressure in the treatment tank 1, boiling occurs inside the food, The ingredients are stirred by this boiling. When boiling occurs in the food material and the food material is stirred, the temperature of the food material becomes uniform. At this stage, the temperature of the upper part of the food material is 119.8 ° C. at both the upper and lower parts. The operation control device 13 monitors the difference in food temperature measured by the upper part temperature sensor 14 and the lower part temperature sensor 15 and ends the decompression agitation by detecting that the temperature difference of the food is small. Detect time. Thereafter, the operation control device 13 operates the steam supply control means 7 to supply steam into the processing bath 1 so that the temperature in the processing bath detected by the temperature detection device 12 becomes the steaming temperature (120 ° C.). And raise the temperature to the cooking temperature.

  Note that the decompression operation is completed even based on the pressure value in the processing tank detected by the pressure detection device 11 as a backup. Even if the upper part temperature sensor 14 or the lower part temperature sensor 15 cannot detect the end of the decompression operation due to failure to accurately detect the food temperature, the processing tank pressure detected by the pressure detection device 11 is reduced in pressure. When the pressure drops to the lower limit pressure value (0.07 MPa), the decompression operation is terminated.

  Thereafter, in this example, the vacuum stirring operation is performed once more during the cooking process. If stirring is performed a plurality of times during the steaming step, the amount of stirring per time can be reduced, and the permeability of the soup to the ingredients is also improved. Since the operation of the vacuum stirring operation has already been described, the description thereof is omitted here. When the cooking process is completed, the operation control device 13 performs a pressure reduction / exhaust process for discharging the steam in the processing tank 1, and discharges the steam through the exhaust path 8 to reduce the pressure in the processing tank 1. When the inside of the processing tank 1 returns to the atmospheric pressure, the door 2 is opened, and the ingredients that have been cooked for boiled food are taken out of the processing tank 1 to complete all the steps.

  By performing the above process, the foodstuff in the sealed processing tank 1 can be stirred. By detecting the temperature at the top and bottom of the ingredients, it is possible to detect when the stirring is necessary, and the cooking is done without the need to stir more than necessary or conversely. be able to. Moreover, when the reduced pressure width at the time of stirring under reduced pressure is increased and the shape of the food is excessively broken due to excessive stirring by boiling, the commercial value is lowered. However, if the temperature difference between the upper and lower portions in the food is monitored and the depressurization is terminated when it is detected that boiling has started, it is possible to prevent excessive stirring. The stirring intensity can also be adjusted by adjusting the time from the detection of boiling of the food to the stop of decompression. If the food is better to stir strongly, the stirring can be strengthened by increasing the time from the detection of the start of boiling to the stop of decompression, and the intensity of stirring can be adjusted by adjusting the delay time.

1 treatment tank
2 doors
3 Cart 4 Food container 5 Food 6 Steam supply path 7 Steam supply control means 8 Exhaust path 9 Exhaust control valve 10 Drain path 11 Pressure detection device 12 Temperature detection device 13 Operation control device
14 Upper part temperature sensor 15 Lower part temperature sensor

Claims (2)

  A processing tank capable of pressurizing the inside, a steam supply control means for controlling supply of steam into the processing tank, an exhaust control valve for controlling discharge of steam from the processing tank, and the steam based on the temperature or pressure in the processing tank By having an operation control device that controls the operation of the supply control means and the exhaust control valve, containing the ingredients for simmered food consisting of solid ingredients and liquid soup in the processing tank, and introducing saturated steam into the processing tank A steaming device that heats ingredients, and maintains the inside of the treatment tank at a predetermined steaming temperature, and during the cooking process where the ingredients are cooked, the pressure in the treatment tank is temporarily higher than the saturated steam pressure at the steaming temperature. In the steaming device that is capable of performing a reduced pressure stirring operation to boil the food material and stir the food material, the temperature inside the food material is detected in the food material in the processing tank. Upper part temperature sensor A lower part temperature sensor is provided to detect the temperature of the lower part of the food, and the temperature difference between the upper and lower parts of the food is detected, and the operation control unit detects the temperature difference between the upper and lower parts of the food during the cooking process. A steaming apparatus that detects and performs a reduced pressure stirring operation when a temperature difference becomes larger than a predetermined value.   2. The steaming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation control device detects the end time of the decompression based on a temperature difference between the upper and lower parts in the food during the decompression stirring operation.

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