JP2974064B2 - Powdered cheese and its manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a powdered cheese used in the field of food processing and a method for producing the cheese.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Cheese has been made from animal milk since prehistoric times and is one of the most popular foods. It is not only delicious but also excellent in nutrition, and is an important source of protein and minerals, especially calcium. Food. Such cheese is processed cheese to make it easier to use, and sliced cheese, string cheese,
It is used by changing its shape to powder cheese. As a powdered material, there is a so-called shaved cheese obtained by shaving hard cheese such as parmesan cheese, which is used in Italian cuisine and the like. However, such cut cheese has a coarse particle, which limits its use. As a method for producing powdered cheese having fine particles, there is a method in which cheese once dissolved is dried and powdered by spray drying or the like.

In this method, an alkali metal salt of phosphoric acid, pyrophosphoric acid or polyphosphoric acid, an alkali metal salt of citric acid, or a combination thereof is used as a solubilizing agent for cheese. Such a solubilizer is required because cheese is difficult to dissolve in water as it is. Especially,
Matured cheese is different from fresh cheese in that it has a low water content and is hard, and the decomposition of casein progresses and its solubility is poor.So, the solubility must be improved by adding alkali metal salts such as the above phosphoric acid. If not, it cannot be used as a solution.

[0004]

Although phosphorus (phosphate) is an essential mineral component in nutrition, it is not deficient in Japanese dietary life, but rather is in an overdose situation. Further, phosphorus (phosphate) antagonizes the absorption of calcium in the body, and too much phosphorus (phosphate) tends to inhibit calcium absorption. Therefore, it is better to refrain from taking phosphorus (phosphate) for health reasons. However, in the conventional method as described above, since the phosphate is added in the process of producing the powdered cheese, the effect of the cheese as a calcium source is reduced by half. The problem to be solved by the present invention is to improve the conventional technology having the above-mentioned drawbacks, to obtain a powdered cheese which has been processed by improving the solubility of cheese without using phosphate, and producing the powdered cheese. Is to establish a method.

[0005]

Means for Solving the Problems The present inventors have conducted intensive research and searched for a solubilizing agent for cheese which can be substituted for the alkali metal phosphate and the alkali metal citrate, and established a method of using the same. As a result, a desired powdered cheese can be easily obtained. The powdered cheese of the first invention is characterized in that it contains 0.5% by weight or more of pectin based on the cheese. Thus, powdered cheese without the addition of phosphate,
The balance between calcium and phosphorus is good, and calcium is easily absorbed in the body. In addition, the cheese here is a so-called matured cheese, for example, cheddar cheese, Gouda cheese, cheese usually aged for 3 months to 6 months, such as Edam cheese, or more than a period of time, semi-hard to hard in the cheese classification It refers to what is contained in cheese. These mature molded cheeses have a good taste, and therefore, when powdered cheese is obtained using them as raw materials, a good-tasting product is obtained. Also, it can be used stably as a raw material.

A second invention is to disperse cheese and pectin in an amount of 0.5% by weight or more with respect to the cheese in water,
It is characterized in that it is stirred and dissolved while being heated at a temperature of not less than ℃ and then dried. By adding pectin, the solubility of the cheese can be improved, so that it is not necessary to use phosphates. A third invention relates to cheese and 1. 1.
It is characterized in that 0% by weight or more of pectin is dispersed in water, dissolved by stirring while heating at 60 ° C. or more, and then dried. Increasing the amount of pectin used and increasing the heating temperature promotes cheese dissolution. The fourth invention is
On the premise of the second and third inventions, it is characterized in that pectin is high methoxy pectin. Using pectin with a high degree of esterification lowers the viscosity of the cheese solution,
It is advantageous in the process.

[0007]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

(Experiment 1) Search for cheese dissolving agent The following experiment was conducted to search for a substance that dissolves cheese in place of alkali metal phosphates and alkali metal citrates from various natural products for food. Experimental method: Dissolve 1.5 g of natural gum for food as a sample in 150 ml of warm water, and shred the cheese 10
After adding 0 g and stirring with a mixer while heating to 60 ° C., the dissolved state was observed. The cheese used here is an equal mixture of cheddar cheese and gouda cheese. Table 1 shows the experimental results. However, "○" in the dissolved state
Indicates a well-melted state, “△” indicates a dispersed but not completely melted state, and “×” indicates a non-melted state. Regarding the viscosity of the solution, “○” indicates that the viscosity is low and the processing is easy, “△” indicates that the viscosity is slightly high,
"X" indicates a state in which the viscosity is so high that the subsequent process cannot be performed as it is.These symbols are also used when expressing the following experimental results.

[0008]

[Table 1] From these results, it was found that pectin has an effect of increasing the solubility of cheese. In particular, when high methoxy pectin having a high degree of esterification is used, the viscosity of the solution can be lowered even with the same addition amount, and the fluidity of the solution is improved, so that the subsequent treatment can be expected to be easier.

Examples of conventional use of pectin in cheese include, for example, JP-A-57-47445 and JP-A-5-47445.
There is an example of using pectin in fresh cheese as described in JP-A-252866, but its use (function) is different from that of the present invention. As is well known, fresh cheese is an unripely molded cheese, which has a higher moisture content and a softer texture than a matured cheese. Therefore, it is easily degraded by microorganisms and the like, and has extremely poor preservability. However, simply heating and sterilizing as it is, the tissue is hard,
It becomes brittle and causes water separation and coagulation, so that the original texture of fresh cheese cannot be maintained.

Therefore, in these inventions, the physical properties of fresh cheese are maintained using pectin. That is, in these inventions, the problem is solved by focusing on the gelling function of pectin. On the other hand, in the present invention, pectin is used in order to increase the solubility of a mature molded cheese which is difficult to dissolve. Since the possibility of pectin as a cheese dissolving agent was confirmed in Experiment 1, the use conditions and the like will be embodied below by experiment.

(Experiment 2) Examination of the amount of pectin added to cheese Experimental method: The amount of high methoxy pectin having a degree of esterification of 74 was changed, and the cheese was dissolved in the same manner as in Experiment 1, and the state was observed. . Table 2 shows the results.

[Table 2]

From these results, it can be seen that if the added amount of pectin is small, the solubility is poor, and if it is increased, the viscosity becomes high. However, when 0.5 g of pectin and the dissolved state is “△”, the cheese is not completely dissolved, but the powdered cheese can be obtained by performing the drying treatment. When the solution viscosity was at the level of “○” or “△”, the treatment could be performed without any problem. However, when the pectin was 5 g, the solution viscosity was too high, and the spray drying treatment was difficult as it was. Thus, even if the solution viscosity is too high, change the drying method,
Alternatively, it can be used if diluted by adding water. Therefore, from the viewpoint of solubility, the amount of pectin that can be used is:
It is 0.5% by weight or more, preferably 1.0% by weight or more based on the cheese. Thus, although there is no upper limit to the amount of pectin used, it is preferable to determine the optimum amount of pectin to be added from the viewpoint of economical efficiency in consideration of the drying efficiency in the production of powdered cheese. For example, when the drying treatment is performed by spray drying, the solid content concentration in the solution is usually 25 to 30% by weight.
It is adjusted to about.

(Experiment 3) Examination of melting temperature of cheese Experimental method: Dissolve 1.5 g of pectin in 150 ml of water,
100 g of cheese was added thereto, and the mixture was stirred at each temperature for 10 minutes, and the dissolved state was observed. Here, pectin is a high methoxy pectin having an esterification degree of 74, and cheese is an equal mixture of cheddar cheese and gouda cheese. Table 3 shows the results of this experiment.

[Table 3]

From these results, it was found that if the temperature at which the cheese was dissolved was less than 50 ° C., it was difficult to dissolve the cheese, and if the temperature was 60 ° C. or more, the cheese was completely dissolved. In addition, this solution was resistant to high-temperature short-time sterilization (120 ° C., 3 seconds) and did not deteriorate. That is, the melting temperature of the cheese is suitably 50 ° C. or higher, preferably 60 ° C. or higher.

An example in which cheese is dissolved under the conditions determined by the above experiments to obtain powdered cheese will be described below. First Example 40 g of pectin is dissolved in 3 l of warm water, 2 kg of chopped cheddar cheese is added, and the mixture is stirred and dissolved while maintaining the temperature at 60 ° C. This is homogenized through an emulsifier, sterilized, and spray-dried. The powdered cheese thus obtained was a smooth powder and retained the original flavor of the cheese. A part of the cheese solution used in the first example was dried by using a freeze dryer for testing, and the same powder cheese as in the first example was obtained.

(Second Embodiment) 50 kg of pectin is dissolved in 3000 l of warm water, 2,000 kg of Gouda cheese and 100 kg of seasoning are added, and the mixture is stirred while heating to 70 ° C. When it melts, it is homogenized in an emulsifier, sterilized at high temperature for a short time, and then spray-dried. Similarly to the first example, the powdered cheese thus obtained was a powder having excellent fluidity and a strong cheese flavor. Since the powdered cheeses of the first and second embodiments do not use an alkali metal salt of phosphoric acid, the balance between calcium and phosphorus is good, and rapid absorption of calcium in the body can be expected.

The above embodiment is an example of the embodiment and does not limit the present invention. For example, the amount of water used can be changed depending on the performance of the dissolving tank and dryer,
The order of adding cheese and pectin may be changed. There are various drying methods, and any of these methods is possible. Further, if desired, other food materials such as seasonings can be added.

[0018]

The powdered cheese of the first invention is a powder having excellent flavor, good solubility and good fluidity by containing pectin. In addition, since it does not use phosphate or the like, it is a health-oriented food material. Second
According to the fourth aspect, the cheese can be dissolved and dried to obtain powdered cheese without using the alkali metal salts of phosphoric acid. The resulting powdered cheese has excellent flavor and fluidity, and also has good calcium absorption. Also, by drying the cheese solution to form a powder, a powder having a small particle size can be produced unlike a shaved cheese. In particular, the third
According to the invention, the solubility of the cheese is further increased, and the powdered cheese can be easily produced. In the fourth invention, the use of high methoxy pectin makes it possible to lower the viscosity of the cheese solution as compared with the case where pectin having a low degree of esterification is used, and the treatment in the process is easy.

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-5-252866 (JP, A) JP-A-4-311347 (JP, A) JP-A-4-267843 (JP, A) 187047 (JP, A) JP-A-4-40851 (JP, A) JP-A-57-47445 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁶ , DB name) A23C 19/086 WPI ( DIALOG)

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A powdered cheese containing 0.5% by weight or more of pectin based on cheese. 2. Cheese and 0.5% by weight of cheese
A method for producing a powdered cheese, comprising dispersing the above pectin in water, stirring and dissolving while heating at 50 ° C. or higher, and then drying. 3. Cheese and 1.0% by weight of cheese
A method for producing a powdered cheese, comprising dispersing the above pectin in water, stirring and dissolving while heating at 60 ° C. or higher, and then drying. 4. The method for producing a powdered cheese according to claim 2, wherein the pectin is high methoxy pectin.