JP3429064B2 - Method and apparatus for thawing frozen food - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for thawing frozen food. More specifically, the present invention is a method and an apparatus for thawing a frozen food using a sintered body containing zeolite, and after thawing, a high-quality food that was difficult to obtain by a conventional method is obtained. The present invention relates to a thawing method and a thawing apparatus which can obtain a food having good storage stability. The present invention is particularly applicable to beef, pork, horse meat,
It can be suitably used for thawing frozen meat obtained by freezing mutton, poultry, whale meat, or various internal organs thereof.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, convenience stores, large-scale supermarkets, food service industries, etc. have been prosperous, and the number of these stores is increasing. Therefore, in the food industry, there is an increasing need for batch purchasing, mass distribution, and mass storage of raw materials. When storing and distributing food, it is desirable to maintain the freshness of the food when it is shipped as high as possible.For such needs, store and distribute the food in a frozen state. Frozen foods that can be best. Frozen foods are, for example, food materials such as livestock meat, seafood, and dairy products, cooked foods, processed foods, etc., frozen at a product temperature of -18 ° C or lower, and usually at the stage of storage and distribution. Is also stored in a temperature environment of -15 ° C or lower.

When such a frozen food is used, it is necessary to thaw the frozen food (hereinafter, thawing the frozen food may be referred to as a thawing operation) to restore the state before freezing. . In general, the operation of thawing a frozen food product is basically performed by applying heat to the frozen food product. In this case, a part of the applied heat is used as latent heat of melting for melting ice crystals, and a part is used as sensible heat for increasing the product temperature. The main methods of thawing frozen foods are classified according to the heating method, and the following (A1) to (A
It is classified into 4) types, and further, as the method of (A1), the methods of (A) and (A), as the method of (A2), the methods of (U) to (E), and as the method of (A3). Is
The methods (1) and (4) are known as the method (A4).

(A1) Method of heating gas as heat medium (a) Still air thawing method: Low-temperature air is circulated at a flow rate of about 1 m / s, and frozen food is allowed to stand therein. For example, a refrigerator can be exemplified. (A) Fluidized air thawing method: The air velocity is increased by air blasting to expose frozen foods to fluidized air.

(A2) Method of heating liquid as heat medium (c) Immersion thawing method: Immerse frozen food in stationary liquid. (D) Fluid immersion thaw method: A frozen food is immersed in a circulating fluid. (E) Spray thawing method: Liquid is sprayed on frozen foods.

(A3) Direct contact with a heating source (f) Contact defrosting method: Hot water is poured into two aluminum hollow plates to hold frozen food.

(A4) Electric heating method (g) Low-frequency current thawing method: An alternating current is passed through frozen food to generate jule heat. (H) High frequency dielectric heating and thawing method: High frequency is applied to frozen foods to cause them to self-heat. Among the methods as described above, the methods (A1) to (A3) are methods for supplying a large amount of heat from the outside of the frozen food, and the method (A4) is used for a large amount inside the frozen food. This is a method of supplying energy to generate heat.

Generally, in the thawing operation, it is preferable that the food after being thawed (hereinafter sometimes referred to as thawed food) is closer to the state of the food before freezing, and the quality of the thawing operation is evaluated from this viewpoint. Often. For example, when thawing frozen meat, ice crystals in the meat are melted by heating and become water, but most of this water returns to the meat and is not a problem, but stains outside the meat. What you get is called drip, which affects the quality of meat.

The amount of this drip increases or decreases depending on the treatment before freezing, the freezing method, the storage state after freezing, etc. Basically, the smaller the drip, the better the meat quality and the yield in the thawing operation. It is considered good. In addition, it is known that the meat turns brown during the thawing operation.
It is known that the meat that has been thawed turns brown in an extremely short period of time as compared with raw meat during subsequent storage. This is attributed to the rapid change of myoglobin in the thawed meat into metmyoglobin. In other words, in the thawing of frozen meat, the amount of drip during thawing is small, the browning of the meat during thawing is small, and further, the thawing method with less browning during storage after thawing is considered to be a good method. ing.

[0010]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] Thawing operation of frozen food,
In particular, for the thawing operation of frozen foods for commercial use, it is required to perform the thawing operation in large quantities, quickly, with low energy consumption, and at low cost. However, the above (A4)
Method has the advantage that the quality of the thawed food is good,
The equipment is expensive and the operating cost is high, so it is not widely used as a thawing method for commercial foods. Therefore, the methods (A1) to (A3) are usually used.

On the other hand, in general, the above (A1)-
The method (A3) has a problem that the quality of food tends to deteriorate by the time thawing is completed. In particular, in the case of the above-mentioned meat, the outside portion that was previously thawed is overheated due to excessive heat, the yield of thawing is deteriorated with many drip flowing out, and the surface of the meat is browned. there were. Therefore, there is also a method in which the temperature at the time of thawing is set to a low temperature of about 0 to 5 ° C., the thawing proceeds slowly, and the time taken for the generated water to be absorbed inside the meat again is also used. Even in this method, there is no drip amount,
It was not possible to prevent browning of the meat after thawing.

For example, in the case of selling meat on a supermarket, a relatively large amount of frozen meat is naturally thawed in a refrigerator for a long time, but a large amount of drip is generated. Further, since the surface of the meat turns brown, it is necessary to remove the surface portion, and the yield is extremely reduced. In particular, when a part of the thawed meat is sold and the rest is refrigerated, the refrigerated meat further browns, and the surface portion must be removed again the next day, resulting in an extremely high yield. descend.

The meat thawed by the methods (A1) to (A3) has a property of being easily browned even after slicing. Especially, in the case of the supermarket,
The thawed meat is sliced and displayed in refrigerated cases for sale, but the sliced meat at the time of opening the store is browning at the time of closing and the quality has deteriorated. It was in the situation of being sold. Furthermore, if the thawing proceeds slowly, the thawing processing amount will decrease, which is inconvenient for commercial use, and since the thawing will take a long time,
In particular, in the temperature range of -7 to -3 ° C, there is a problem that the biochemical change of meat is caused by the influence of the enzyme and the meat is deteriorated.

After all, in the conventional methods (A1) to (A3), it is not possible to avoid the deterioration of quality, the deterioration of the yield, and the deterioration of the storage stability associated with the defrosting operation. It was considered that the reduction of the amount of processing or the deterioration of food could not be avoided.

Under the circumstances, the inventors of the present invention have conducted extensive studies on the above-mentioned problems, and as a result, when a frozen food is thawed, a sintered body containing a predetermined component is caused to act on the frozen food. The present invention has been completed by solving the above problems and finding that a high quality thawed food can be obtained with an extremely small amount of energy.

The present invention has the following problems (1) and (2) in view of the above problems and research results. (1) To provide a method for thawing frozen foods, which provides a thawed food with high quality and good storability, and which consumes less energy and costs less. (2) To provide a defrosting device for frozen foods, which can obtain defrosted foods with high quality and good storability, and consume less energy and cost.

[0017]

A first invention of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems is a method for thawing frozen foods, which comprises thawing a frozen food by contacting it with a liquid, wherein the frozen food contains zeolite. Contact the liquid that has come into contact with the sintered body of
And thereby create a multi-layered ice layer on the outer surface of frozen food
And a method for thawing a frozen food, which comprises thawing the frozen food by dissolving the frozen food.

A second invention of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems is a method for thawing a frozen food product, which comprises thawing a frozen food product by bringing it into contact with a liquid and then bringing it into contact with a heated gas for thawing.
Te, the frozen food Rukoto into contact with the liquid in contact with the sintered body containing zeolite, whereby the outer surface of the frozen food
A method for thawing a frozen food product, which comprises thawing a frozen food product by producing a multilayer ice layer and then bringing it into contact with a heating gas that has been burnt and heated together with a zeolite-containing sintered body. In the invention and the second invention, it is preferable that the frozen food is frozen meat.

A third aspect of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems is a liquid tank in which a liquid is stored and a frozen food is immersed, and a zeolite-containing sintered body arranged at a position in contact with the liquid. And a storage chamber for storing frozen food, a combustion-type gas heating device arranged at the bottom of the storage chamber, and a secondary having a zeolite-containing sintered body heated by the gas heating device. Equipped with a processing device ,
Frozen food into a liquid in contact with a sintered body containing zeolite
Contact, which results in multiple layers of ice on the outer surface of the frozen food.
And then burned with the zeolite-containing sintered body.
Thaw frozen food by contacting it with heated gas that has been baked and baked
It has to be thawing apparatus of frozen food characterized by,
And that the primary treatment device and the secondary treatment device are arranged in a refrigerator (hereinafter, described as another aspect),
Is also a desirable mode.

Next, the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems will be described in detail. In order to clarify the correspondence between the constituent elements of the present invention and the constituent elements of the embodiments described later, The component numbers are enclosed in parentheses. The reason why the present invention is described in correspondence with the reference numerals of the embodiments described below is to make the present invention easier to understand, and not to limit the scope of the present invention to the embodiments.

The thawing method of the first invention of the present invention is based on the above-mentioned known thawing method (A2), and can be carried out using a known apparatus for performing the above-mentioned thawing method (A2). . That is, in the first invention, the frozen food (F) is thawed by bringing it into contact with a liquid. The liquid is preferably one that is difficult to freeze at low temperatures, and for example, water, saline, and other antifreeze liquids such as ethylene glycol solution can be exemplified as suitable liquids, but in consideration of food hygiene and price. If so, water is most desirable. In consideration of food hygiene, it is preferable that the frozen food (F) be vacuum-packed or packaged with an appropriate packaging material before the first step is started.

In the present invention, it is important to bring the liquid used for thawing into contact with a sintered body containing zeolite (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a sintered body). This sintered body can be manufactured according to a known method for manufacturing ceramics, pottery, and the like. For example, a powdery or granular material containing zeolite is mixed and adjusted, clay and a liquid material are added as a binder, kneaded, and compressed into a predetermined shape,
It is molded and fired. In this case, it is more effective to use a low-fired sintered body obtained by firing (calcination) at a relatively low temperature, instead of using high-fired high-fired ceramics.

The sintered body thus produced has a catalytic function peculiar to zeolite. In order to further enhance such a catalytic function, it is preferable to contain, as a material, in addition to zeolite, an iron ion component and / or a trace amount component as exemplified in Example 1 described later. Any of these materials can be selected and added by any method, but it is desirable to select at least ammonium ammonium sulfate and / or ferric chloride in order to enhance the action of the zeolite. As the type of zeolite used, synthetic zeolite may be used in addition to natural one, but natural zeolite is particularly desirable. Examples of the natural zeolite include mordenite and clinoptilolite, which are easily available and are preferable in terms of price. The form of the sintered body may be any form such as a solid form, a film form, a granular form, and a powder form, and at least a form capable of being brought into contact with the liquid is required.

In the first invention, the frozen food (F) may be immersed in a liquid in any form. For example, the frozen food (F) may be immersed in the liquid as it is, or the liquid may be sprayed on the frozen food (F). When the frozen food (F) is immersed in the liquid as it is, a natural convection method in which the frozen food (F) is simply allowed to stand in a stationary liquid or a forced convection method in which the liquid is forcibly circulated and stirred may be used. Further, in the case where the liquid is circulated, it is possible to adopt a mode in which a column filled with a sintered body is installed in a conduit for circulating the liquid. Among the various modes described above, the mode in which the frozen food (F) is directly immersed in the liquid is preferable because it is simple in terms of equipment.

The temperature of the liquid is set to an appropriate temperature depending on the type, size, frozen state, etc. of the frozen food (F). The amount of heat required for the frozen food (F) to be thawed may be allowed to naturally flow in, but may be appropriately supplemented with heat. That is, during the defrosting operation, as in the example described later,
Although many ice layers are formed around the frozen food (F), when the amount of the liquid is smaller than the heat capacity of the frozen food (F), most of the liquid becomes ice, and thus the liquid convection occurs. May stop. In such a case, it is preferable that the thickness of the ice layer is controlled appropriately by supplementing heat appropriately.

As a device for replenishing heat, it is desirable to delicately replenish the necessary amount of heat in accordance with the degree of thawing of the frozen food (F), such as electric heaters and electric heaters. It is preferable to use means. It is also recommended that the liquid temperature be adjusted by feedback control.

In order to ensure the quality of the thawed food, it is desirable that the temperature of the liquid at the time of thawing is low, 0 ° C to 5 ° C, preferably 1 ° C to 3 ° C. Therefore, before performing the method of the first invention, the temperature is lowered by introducing ice into the liquid in advance, or
Alternatively, it is recommended to store the device itself for performing the method of the first invention in a refrigerator. Further, equipment for cooling the liquid may be separately attached to the apparatus for performing the method of the first invention.
As described above, after the frozen food (F) is thawed according to the first invention, the frozen food (F) may be refrigerated as usual, and this refrigeration can also be regarded as finishing thawing.

The defrosting method of the second invention of the present invention is based on a combination of the known defrosting methods (A1) and (A2). First, the same thaw operation as in the first aspect of the present invention is performed (hereinafter referred to as the first step), and then the frozen food is thawed by contacting with gas (hereinafter referred to as the second step). List). In the second step, the gas is heated to provide the amount of heat required for thawing. The thawing method of the second invention of the present invention can be suitably used particularly for frozen foods that cannot be sufficiently thawed only by the first invention.

The time required for the first step depends on the size of the frozen food, etc., but when the first step is completed, the frozen food (F) is appropriately thawed, and then the second step is continued.
Is subjected to the process of. In the second step, as described above, the frozen food is thawed using the gas as the heat medium. For this operation, a known device for performing the above defrosting method (A1) can be used. This step is preferably performed in a closed system that is shielded from the outside air, and in such a closed system, it is preferable that the environment is slightly positive pressure than atmospheric pressure.

The gas is obtained by heating air with an appropriate heating source, and the heating source used is combustion. Therefore, the gas is a mixture of air and combustion gas, and combustion causes the gas component to be in a state suitable for thawing. Examples of combustion heating sources include solid fuel combustion devices, gas fuel combustion devices, and liquid fuel combustion devices, among which examples of solid fuel combustion devices include briquettes, charcoal, bean charcoal, coke, and the like. Further, examples of the gas fuel combustion device include a propane gas burner and a city gas burner.
Further, as an example of the liquid fuel combustion apparatus, a kerosene burner or the like can be exemplified, and any one can be used.

The temperature and thawing time of the gas in the second step are
It is appropriately determined according to the type and size of the frozen food (F) and the degree of thawing in the first step. Therefore, a gas fuel combustion device that is easy to handle, safe, and easy to control the temperature of the gas is desirable as the heating source by the combustion. When the gas is heated, the zeolite-containing sintered body is also heated. Since the catalytic function of the sintered body is activated when the temperature becomes high, it is desirable to dispose the sintered body in the vicinity of the heating source or to connect it integrally. The frozen food (F) is thawed through the above-mentioned first step and second step.

The thaw device of the third aspect of the present invention is a thaw device (10) for thawing frozen food (F) by immersing it in a liquid (W) and a thaw product for frozen food (F) by gas. And a secondary processing device (20). The primary treatment device (10) includes a liquid tank (11) for storing a liquid (W).
The frozen food (F) is immersed in the liquid (W) in the liquid tank (11). Therefore, the internal volume of the liquid tank (11) can be appropriately determined according to the throughput of the thawing operation, and the shape of the liquid tank (11) allows the frozen food (F) to be immersed in the liquid (W). Any shape may be used as long as it is one.

The liquid tank (11) may be provided with a heat replenishing device (14) for replenishing the liquid (W) with heat. The heat replenishing device (14) may be of any type as long as it can give the required amount of heat to the liquid (W), and may be of any form. For example, electric heaters such as seed heaters
Examples thereof include a method of installing the liquid in the liquid tank (11), a method of installing a heat exchanger or the like in the liquid tank (11), and a method of exchanging heat while circulating the liquid (W) in the pipeline. However, it does not require such a large amount of heat and a convenient electric heater is desirable. A commercially available electric heater can be used. The heat replenishing device (14) may be installed at any position of the liquid tank (11), but the space for thawing the frozen food (F) can be maximized, and
Liquid tank (11) that can effectively replenish the liquid (W) with heat
Is preferred.

The liquid tank (11) is provided with a sintered body (13) containing zeolite. The sintered body (13) may be provided in any shape and in any position as long as it is in contact with the liquid (W).
For example, the vicinity of the heat replenishing device (14) is desirable. The liquid tank (11) may be provided with a stirring device in order to improve heat transfer to the frozen food (F). Examples of the stirring device include mechanical stirring with a stirrer, an air agitator, and a liquid circulation pipe line.

The secondary processing device (20) has a storage chamber (21) for storing frozen food (F). In order to effectively use the storage space, it is desirable to provide a shelf (27) inside the storage chamber (21), and in order to keep the inside at a constant temperature, the wall (21a) of the storage chamber (21) is It is desirable to use a material with good heat insulation. Storage room (2
At the bottom of 1), a gas heating device (24) for heating the inside of the storage chamber (21) is arranged. Gas heating device (24)
Is a combustion type. As the gas heating device (24), a gas fuel combustion type is desirable, and for example, a propane gas burner, a city gas burner and the like can be exemplified as preferable ones.

"Bottom" means at least frozen food (F)
Means a position lower than the position when the thawing is performed, and therefore, "arranged at the bottom" means the storage chamber (21).
Not only on the bottom surface of the frozen food (F), but also at least below the position of the frozen food (F). The storage chamber (21) may be provided with an intake fan that takes in outside air and lowers the temperature when the temperature inside rises too much. Further, in order to maintain the quality of the thawed food (F), it is desirable to finely control the temperature inside the storage chamber (21), and it is recommended that a temperature control device such as a thermometer and a temperature controller be provided. To be done.

In the present invention, the storage chamber (21) is made up of the sintered body (2).
3) is provided. The position where the sintered body (23) is arranged is a position where it is directly heated by the gas heating device (24), and it is located near the gas heating device (24) or connected to the gas heating device (24). It can be illustrated as an example. Further, a mode such as a ceramic burner in which a burner and a sintered body are integrated may be used.

The sintered bodies (13, 23) of the present invention do not have to have the same composition in the primary treatment device (10) and the secondary treatment device (20), and each of them has a plurality of sintered bodies. Good. In another aspect of the present invention, the primary treatment device (10) and the secondary treatment device (20) are arranged in a refrigerator (30). The "refrigerator" is not limited to a refrigerator as a so-called mechanical device, and artificially sets the external environment of the primary processing device (10) and the secondary processing device (20) to -1 ° C or more and 15 ° C or less. Anything that can be maintained in "is included in the" refrigerator "of the present invention.

[0039]

Next, the operation of the present invention having the above-mentioned structure will be described. In the thawing method of the first invention of the present invention, first, the frozen food (F) is brought into contact with a liquid. Heat is transferred from the liquid to the frozen food (F), but the liquid is given heat by natural inflow of heat from the outside or supplementation of appropriate heat.
With the conventional thawing method that does not use a sintered body, the outside is thawed faster than the core of the frozen food (F), and the temperature of the outside rises quickly. Therefore, when the core of the frozen food (F) is thawed, the outside is overheated and the quality is deteriorated. For example, in the case of frozen meat, the outside will be overheated, the drip will flow out, and the meat surface will easily turn brown.

On the other hand, in the method of the present invention,
The liquid is brought into contact with a sintered body containing zeolite, but as shown in Test Example 1 described later, due to the action of this sintered body, the temperature difference between the core portion and the surface portion of the frozen food (F) is small. There is a feature that becomes. Therefore, there is no local overheating inside the frozen food (F), and the quality does not deteriorate.

The time required for thawing can also be shortened by the method of the present invention. That is, the thawed portion contains water, but in general, water has a lower thermal conductivity than ice, and in the above conventional thaw method, the water contained in the outer portion after the thaw is , The heat transfer to the core will be alienated. On the other hand, in the thawing method of the present invention, since the temperature difference between the core and the surface of the frozen food (F) is small, efficient heat transfer can be performed. After all, in the case of the above-mentioned meat, the thawing time is short, the outflow amount of the drip is drastically reduced, browning hardly occurs, and high-quality meat can be obtained.

When the frozen food (F) is thawed by the method of the present invention, a phenomenon occurs in which many ice layers are continuously formed around the frozen food (F). Moreover, needle-like crystals are formed inside this ice layer, and when observed with the naked eye, the ice is totally opaque. On the other hand, this phenomenon does not occur in the conventional thawing method, and a thin and transparent ice layer is simply formed around the frozen food (F). That is, the thawing method of the present invention is fundamentally different in heat transfer state from the conventional thawing method.

In the second aspect of the present invention, after the same step as the first aspect (that is, the first step) is performed, the frozen food (F) is continuously subjected to the second step. To be done. When the size of the frozen food (F) is small, it can be thawed only by the first invention. However, if the size of the frozen food (F) is large, or if necessary, the first
It is more effective to combine the second step with the invention of
The time required for thawing can also be shortened.

In the second step, the frozen food (F) which has undergone the first step is heated using gas as a heating medium. The gas is obtained by heating air by combustion, and also contains combustion gas together with air. When the air is heated, the sintered body is also heated, but the zeolite contained in the sintered body has a catalytic ability, and the components in the gas are adjusted to be suitable for thawing. That is, the gas heated with the sintered body is
It is in a state suitable for maintaining the quality of the frozen food (F). For example, when the frozen food (F) is meat, browning of the meat during the second step is suppressed, the off-flavor of the meat is removed, and the meat is further aged.

Generally, in the thawing method using gas as the heat medium, the quality of the food often deteriorates when the surface of the food is dried, and it is necessary to maintain the gas at a high humidity. But,
In the thawing method of the present invention, as described above, many layers of ice are generated in the frozen food (F) that has finished the first step, and these are melted in the second step. The frozen food (F) can be thawed under a high humidity condition without any risk of degrading the quality of the frozen food (F). As described above, the thawed food that has undergone the first step and the second step becomes a food of extremely high quality.

In the thawing device which is the third invention of the present invention, first, the frozen food (F) is thawed by the primary processing device (10). In the primary processing device (10),
The frozen food (F) contacts the liquid (W) in the liquid tank (11). The liquid tank (11) is provided with a sintered body (13), and the liquid (W) also contacts the sintered body (13). Heat is transferred to the frozen food (F) by convection in the liquid (W).

In the conventional similar thawing apparatus, thawing proceeds in a state where the outside temperature is high inside the frozen food (F) and the core temperature is low, but in the apparatus of the present invention, the frozen food (F) The core is thawed quickly, and the temperature distribution does not easily occur inside the frozen food (F). Therefore, by using the primary treatment apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to obtain a high-quality thawed food which was difficult to obtain by the conventional method. Moreover, since the core of the frozen food (F) is thawed quickly, the time required for thawing is shortened.

Next, the frozen food (F) is placed inside the storage chamber (21) in the secondary processing device (20). The inside of the storage chamber (21) is heated by the gas heating device (24), and the sintered body (23) is also heated. Therefore, the inside of the storage chamber (21) is filled with only the heated gas acted by the sintered body (23). For example, when the frozen food (F) is meat, the gas on which the sintered body (23) acts has the effect of removing the offensive odor of the meat, and has the effect of promoting the ripening of the meat in a high quality state.

Further, in the thawing apparatus of the present invention, many layers of ice are formed in the frozen food (F) which has been thawed by the primary processing apparatus (10), and the operation of the secondary processing apparatus (20) is performed. Since these melt inside, the inside of the storage chamber (21) is in a natural high humidity state. As described above, in the decompression device of the present invention, the primary processing device (10) and the secondary processing device (2
By the action of 0), a high-quality thawed food can be obtained. In particular, when the thawing apparatus of the present invention is applied to meat, it is possible to obtain extremely high quality meat with a small amount of drip, a low degree of browning, and sufficient aging.

In another aspect of the thaw apparatus of the present invention,
The primary processing device (10) and the secondary processing device (20) are installed in a refrigerator (30). Therefore, the liquid in the primary treatment device (10) is always kept at a low temperature,
When you start thawing, you can start the thawing operation immediately. In addition, since the liquid is refrigerated, the risk of bacterial growth is reduced. Further, since the food product that has been thawed by the secondary processing device (20) is continuously refrigerated, the food product that has been thawed can be handled easily.

As described above, the energy required in the defrosting method and apparatus of the present invention can be said to be almost only the amount of heat for replenishing the liquid and the fuel for burning and heating the gas, so that the energy is extremely small. The thawing operation can be performed depending on consumption and cost. In the present specification, the present invention has been mainly described by taking an example of meat, but this is only for facilitating the understanding of the present invention, and the present invention includes other frozen foods, for example, It goes without saying that it can also be effectively applied to frozen dairy products such as frozen cream, frozen butter, frozen cheese, frozen egg, frozen juice, frozen tuna, and other frozen seafood.

[0052]

EXAMPLES Examples of the present invention will now be described, but the scope of the present invention is not limited to the following examples. Example 1 An example of a zeolite-containing sintered body used in the present invention will be described. In the following description, percentages are values by weight unless otherwise specified. 1. Manufacture of sintered body for liquid (1) Mixing of raw materials 1) Natural zeolite 52.4% 2) Clay 18.5% 3) Trimagnesium phosphate 9.2% 4) Iron powder (ferrite) 5.6% 5 ) Silicon nitride 3.1% 6) Ferrous oxide 3.1% 7) Ammonium aluminum sulfate 2.8% 8) Ferric chloride 2.8% 9) Charcoal 2.5% 10) Silver powder Trace amount

(2) Manufacturing Method Among the above materials, 1) was previously sieved with a 40-mesh sieve, other raw materials were mixed, and a polyvinyl alcohol aqueous solution was added at appropriate times to knead to obtain a material. This material was pressed under a pressure of 5 tons, molded, and fired in a furnace for 15 to 16 hours to obtain a liquid sintered body.

2. 1. Manufacture of sintered body for gas Aluminum oxide and charcoal powder were used as the whole material in 2.
It was added up to an amount of 6% and molded and fired in the same manner to obtain a rectangular parallelepiped gas sintered body.

Embodiment 2 Next, one embodiment of the decompression device of the present invention will be described. 1. Configuration FIG. 1 is a front view and a plan view showing an embodiment of a decompression device of the present invention. 1A is a plan view and FIG. 1A is a front view.

The defrosting device of the present invention comprises a primary processing device 10 and a secondary processing device 20, which are mounted on the base 2 and connected to each other. The base 2 is equipped with a tank holder-4. The base 2 is placed at the installation location 1 and is self-supporting by a plurality of footrests 3. Height adjusting bolts 3a are incorporated in the footrests 3, respectively.

The primary treatment apparatus 10 is equipped with a water tank 11 (stainless steel, capacity 400 liters). A stainless steel shelf 12 is detachably incorporated in the water tank 11, and a liquid sintered body 13 manufactured by the method described in Example 1 is installed in the lower portion of the stainless steel shelf 12. . Since the stainless steel shelf 12 is made of stainless steel pipe, water W can freely flow between the upper and lower sides of the stainless steel shelf 12.

The shape of the liquid sintered body 13 in Example 2 is a hollow rectangular parallelepiped whose longitudinal direction is open, and a heater 14 is inserted therein. The heater 14 is connected to the external terminal 14a, and the external terminal 14a is connected to a power source (not shown).

The secondary processing device 20 has a storage chamber 21. Although the storage chamber 21 has a door 22, it is shown in FIG. 1 with the door 22 open. The reason why the door 22 is shown in the opened state is to clearly show the inside of the storage chamber 21 in FIG. A plurality of shelves 27 are installed inside the storage chamber 21. The shelf 27 is not shown in FIG. 1A, and the bottom surface of the storage chamber 21 is shown. Further, in FIG. 1A, the ceiling portion of the storage chamber 21 is cut away to show the cross section 21 a of the storage chamber 21.

Two gas sintered bodies 23 manufactured by the method described in Example 1 are installed on the bottom surface of the storage chamber 21. The gas sintered body 23 is not shown in FIG. The shape of the sintered body for gas 23 is a square flat plate, and a propane gas burner 24 is provided directly below it.
Are arranged respectively. A propane gas cylinder 28 is placed outside the storage chamber 21.
From a propane gas burner through a gas pipe (not shown)
Propane gas is supplied to 24. The storage chamber 21 is provided with an exhaust pipe (not shown) for exhausting combustion gas to the outside.

A thermometer (not shown) is installed in the water tank 11 of the primary treatment device 10 and the storage chamber 21 of the secondary treatment device 20, and the heater 14 and the propane gas burner-2 are provided.
4 includes an output controller and a combustion control device (not shown). These are all connected to a controller (not shown), and the controller is a storage room 2
1 Installed in a control panel 25 arranged outside.

2. Action Next, the procedure for thawing the frozen food F using the thawing device having the above-described configuration will be described in detail, and the action of the second embodiment will be described. The water tank 11 is filled with water W, and an appropriate amount of ice is added to lower the temperature in advance. Frozen food F in aquarium 11
And settle on the stainless steel shelf 12. Heater-1
4 is operated, and the water temperature is adjusted to 1 to 2 by adjusting the output controller provided in the heater 14 by the controller.
It is controlled at ℃, and thawed for a predetermined time in that state.

The heat transfer characteristic of the water W in the water tank 11 is changed by the action of the liquid sintered body 13. Therefore, since the core of the frozen food F is thawed quickly and the temperature of the outside is low, the inside of the frozen food F is not locally overheated and the thawing proceeds without deteriorating the quality. Moreover, since the heat acts on the whole, the time required for thawing is short. The optimal processing time for the above steps is determined depending on the type, size, and condition of frozen food.

Then, the frozen food F is taken out from the water tank 11, the door 22 of the storage chamber 21 is opened, and the frozen food F is left standing on the shelf 27.
Close the door 22. The inside of the storage room 21 is
The combustion control device is operated by a laser, the combustion of the propane gas burner 24 is adjusted, and the temperature is controlled to about 15 ° C.

The gas sintered body 23 is a propane gas burner.
The sintered body for gas 23 is heated by the combustion of 24
The catalytic action of the natural zeolite contained in is promoted. The gas in the storage chamber 21 is adjusted to the optimum state for thawing by the catalytic action of the gas sintered body 23. Aquarium 11
The frozen food F taken out from the frozen foods F has many layers of ice, which are melted inside the storage chamber 21, so that the inside of the storage chamber 21 has a humidity of almost 100%. It is possible to prevent the frozen food F from drying without requiring.

3. Modification of Configuration of Second Embodiment The defrosting device of the second embodiment can be added with a function of automatically stopping the operation of the device after a predetermined time has elapsed. In that case, the temperature of the defrosted food after the defrosting may increase, so the storage chamber 21 may be provided with a cooling means.
Any cooling means may be used, but in addition to a device installed in a normal refrigerator, a heat exchanger may be installed inside the storage chamber 21 to flow a cooling medium such as brine or chilled water. In this way, the thawed food can be refrigerated continuously after the frozen food is thawed.

The water W stored in the water tank 11 is
It is desirable to set the temperature to a low temperature in advance before performing the thawing operation, but for this purpose, the water tank 11 may be provided with a cooling means. As the cooling means, for example, a mode in which a heat exchange means such as a cooling pipe is provided inside the water tank 11 and a cooling medium such as brine or chilled water is flowed through the heat exchange means can be exemplified. Furthermore, a water circulation line and a circulation pump are installed in the water tank 11,
A heater and the cooling means may be installed in this circulation line, and in such an embodiment, heating and cooling can be performed efficiently and water can be stirred.

4. Peculiar effects of Embodiment 2 In the defrosting apparatus of Embodiment 2, since the water tank 11 is provided with the heater 14, it is possible to replenish heat in the water tank 11 in addition to the natural inflow of heat, and frozen foods. The thickness of the ice layer that forms around F can be controlled. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the convection of the water W from stopping.

Embodiment 3 Next, another embodiment of the decompression device of the present invention will be described. 1. Configuration FIG. 2 is a schematic front view and a plan view showing another embodiment of the defrosting device of the present invention. In FIG. 2, (a) is a schematic front view, and a part thereof is also shown as a cross-sectional view.
(A) is a schematic plan view and also serves as a cross-sectional view taken along line XX ′ in (A). The defrosting device itself of the third embodiment is
The same device as that of the second embodiment is used. Therefore,
The same components as those in the second embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals as those in the second embodiment, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In FIG. 2, the primary processing device 10 and the secondary processing device 20 are installed inside a refrigerator 30.
The refrigerator 30 includes a refrigerator body 31 and a unit cooler.
It consists of 33. The refrigerator body 31 is provided with a door 32 so that a worker can freely go in and out. In addition, in FIG. 2A, the refrigerator main body 31 is shown in a sectional view. The secondary treatment device 20 includes an exhaust pipe 26,
The exhaust pipe 26 penetrates the outside of the refrigerator body 31.
Further, the propane gas cylinder 28 for the secondary treatment device 20 is installed outside the refrigerator body 31.

2. When the action unit cooler 33 is operated, the refrigerator main body 31
The inside of the is cooled to a low temperature of 10 ° C or less. In this state, the frozen food is thawed by the primary processing device 10,
The water in the primary treatment device 10 has already been cooled, and it is not necessary to perform an operation such as adding ice. When the thawing by the secondary processing device is completed, the secondary processing device is stopped, but since the inside of the refrigerator main body 31 is at a low temperature of 10 ° C. or lower, the thawed food is refrigerated as it is. Since the propane gas cylinder 28 is installed outside the refrigerator main body 31, there is little trouble in exchanging the propane gas cylinder 28.

3. Effects of Embodiment 3 Using the thawing device of Embodiment 3 simplifies the thawing work. For example, the worker can operate the secondary processing device 20 after thawing by the primary processing device 10 and return home in that state. Even after the thawing is completed and the secondary processing device 20 is stopped, the food is still refrigerated and the food can be used as it is on the next day. Further, since the water in the primary treatment device 10 is always at a low temperature, there is also an advantage that various bacteria are unlikely to grow even when not in use.

Example 4 Next, an example of the defrosting method of the present invention using the apparatus of Example 2 described above will be described together with a comparative example. 1. Australian Beef Chuck Show 60 days after sample killing
Five frozen samples of trib having the same shape (2.5 kg) were selected and used as samples. In addition, this sample is an imported product, and is vacuum-packed with a normal meat vacuum packaging material at the shipping stage.

2. While operating the first step heater 14 to control the water temperature to 1.5 ± 0.5 ° C., the sample was immersed and the state was visually observed.
An opaque ice layer is formed on the outer surface of the sample, and many layers of ice are formed on the outer side of the sample over time, and finally a multilayer ice layer having a thickness of 1.5 centimeters is formed. did.
After about 2 hours, the sample was taken out.

3. Second step The sample taken out is put in the storage chamber 21, and the propane gas bar is
The internal temperature was controlled to 15 ± 1 ° C. by controlling the combustion of the Na-24, and after leaving it still for about 1 hour, it was taken out.
When taken out, a strange odor like methane gas was present inside the storage chamber 21, confirming the catalytic action of the sintered body.
The lump of meat was taken out from the sample packaging material and sliced to confirm that the thawing was completed.

4. The weight of the drip accumulated in the measurement packaging material was measured, and the ratio with the weight of the original frozen beef was calculated to obtain the thawing yield. 5. Results above 2. ~ 4. When the above operation was repeated 5 times, the thawing yield was 96% on average. In addition, the color of the thawed beef was extremely clear and comparable to that of unfrozen beef.

Comparative Example 1 Next, a comparative example using the apparatus of Example 2 will be described. 1. Sample The same sample as the sample of Example 4 was used. 2. In the first step, the liquid sintered body 13 of the primary treatment device 10 was removed, and a thawing operation with simple water (that is, a conventional thawing method) was performed. The temperature conditions were the same as in Example 4, and the thawing time was 4
It was time. Observation of the sample during thawing revealed a thin ice layer of about 5 mm on the outer surface of the sample, but the ice layer did not grow any further and only one layer was formed until the end. Further, in Example 4, ice was generated only on the outer side of the sample, that is, the outer side of the packaging material.
A plurality of ice blocks of about 1 to 3 centimeters were generated inside the packaging material.

3. Second step The gas sintered body 23 of the secondary treatment device 20 was removed, and thawing was performed as a conventional thawing method using air. The temperature conditions were the same as in Example 4, and the thawing time was 1 hour. No odor as in Example 4 was felt inside the storage chamber 21 after the thawing was completed.

4. The thawing yield was calculated by the same method as in Example 4. 5. 2. ~ 4. When the above operation was repeated 5 times, the thawing yield was 92% on average. The color of the thawed beef was slightly dull, which was inferior to that of the thawed beef of Example 4.

Comparative Example 2 1. The same sample and process sample as the sample of Example 4 were used. The sample was left to stand in a refrigerator at 6 ° C. and left as it was for 72 hours to thaw it. 2. As a result, the thawing yield was 88% on average. In addition, the color of the surface of the thawed beef was black, and had no commercial value unless the surface portion was scraped off.

Fifth Embodiment Further, another embodiment of the defrosting method of the present invention using the apparatus of the second embodiment will be described. 1. Samples and process From domestic beef (striploin) frozen with a quick freezer (Technican Co., Ltd., Liquid Freezer), about 5 pieces of the same shape (2.5 kg) were selected, and the meat was selected. The sample was vacuum-packed with a vacuum packaging material for use as a sample in the same manner as in Example 4. The temperature condition for thawing was the same as in Example 4 above.
And the thawing time in the first step was 2 hours and the thawing time in the second step was 1 hour. The thawing yield was determined in Example 4 above.
The calculation was performed in the same manner as in, and the above operation was repeated 5 times.

2. Results All thawing yields were 99%. That is, almost no drip flowed out from all the samples. Also,
The color of the thawed beef was extremely vivid and exactly the same as that of unfrozen beef, the difference being invisible to the naked eye.

From the results of Examples 4 and 5 and Comparative Examples 1 and 2 described above, in the defrosting method of the present invention,
It was found that the amount of meat drip is extremely small compared to the conventional thawing method, the drip can be almost completely eliminated depending on the freezing conditions, and the color of the meat after thawing is also good. That is, according to the thawing method of the present invention, it is possible to perform thawing with a good yield without impairing the quality of frozen foods. The meat thawed by the methods of Examples 4 and 5 and Comparative Example 2 was stored in a refrigerator for about 3 days, and the colors of the meat of Examples 4 and 5 were almost the same as those immediately after the thawing. However, the meat of Comparative Example 2 remarkably progressed browning. That is, it was revealed that the thawing method of the present invention can preserve the meat after thawing without browning it.

Test Example 1 Next, a test example for confirming the operation of the thawing method of the present invention will be described. 1. As the method sample, 5 kilograms of frozen meat chunks of frozen pork (loose) were used. Only the first step was performed under the same conditions as in Example 4 described above (1.5 ± 0.5 ° C., 2 hours) to obtain a test sample. Further, as a comparative example, the comparative example 1 described above is used.
That is, only the first step was performed under the same conditions as (that is, the conventional method) to obtain a control sample. Immediately before the completion of thawing in the first step, a sheath thermocouple thermometer was inserted into each site of the test sample, and the temperature of each site was measured and compared. The same applies to the control sample.

2. Results The temperatures of the center and the surface of the test sample are all-
It was confirmed that the temperature was within the range of 1.4 ° C. to −1.2 ° C., there was almost no difference in product temperature between the central portion of the sample and the portion close to the surface, and there was no temperature unevenness inside the sample. On the other hand, in the control sample, the central portion of the sample was −4 ° C. and the portion near the surface was + 0.5 ° C., and the temperature was different each time the thermometer was inserted. That is, the temperature of the sample was 0 ° C. or lower on average, but there were many variations in each part.

From the above results, it was found that in the thawing method of the present invention, the inside of the frozen food can be thawed under a uniform condition without being overheated locally.
In general, meat is said to be in a dangerous area where the temperature range of -7 ° C to 13 ° C is likely to deteriorate, but in the conventional method, the central portion of the meat is exposed to this dangerous area for a long time.

Test Example 2 Next, a test for evaluating the preservability of the thawed food according to the present invention will be described. The contents of this test are supermarket,
It is assumed that the beef is thawed into a slice pack product and displayed in a refrigerated case at a retail store or the like. This test was conducted by the Akita Prefectural College of Agricultural Science, Food Research Laboratory.

1. The beef immediately after thawing according to Method Example 4 and the beef immediately after thawing according to Comparative Example 2 were each sliced into a thickness of 3 mm, arranged on a tray made of Styrofoam and covered with a wrap, It was a slice pack product. Each of the sliced and packed products is stored in a refrigerated case (internal temperature 1
It was stored side by side at 0 ° C. and the state of color of the sliced surface was visually observed.

2. Results At the end of thawing (start of refrigeration), no difference was observed between the meat of Example 4 and the meat of Comparative Example 2 on the sliced surface. After 2 hours of refrigeration, the meat of Comparative Example 2 started to change its color and became dull in color, and after 12 hours, it became almost dark brown and lost its commercial value. On the other hand, the meat of Example 4 did not change at all. Furthermore, the meat of Example 4 was kept refrigerated as it was, but the color did not change, and the color of the meat did not change even after 1 week. From the results of this test, in the thawing method of the present invention, particularly in the case of meat, browning of the sliced surface can be suppressed even when slicing the meat after thawing, and high quality is maintained for an extremely long period of time. It turned out to be possible.

Test Example 3 Next, a test for demonstrating that the thawed food product of the present invention is of high quality will be described. 1. From the sample thawed according to Method Example 4 and the sample thawed according to Comparative Example 1, 25 ml of each drip was sampled. For these samples,
Lysosome N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminida
Zea (NAGase) and ninhydrin reagent were used for color development, and the amount of amino nitrogen by absorption at 580 nm was measured to compare both samples.

2. Results The sample of Example 4 has a higher level of NAGas than Comparative Example 1.
e was 62.1% less, and the amount of amino acid nitrogen released was 86.3% less. That is, it is clear that the sample of Example 4 has a significantly lower degree of cell damage than the sample of Comparative Example 1. As described above, Comparative Example 1
In, the ice block was generated inside the sample being thawed,
From the results of this test, it can be inferred that the liquid that had flowed out was frozen due to damage to the cells. That is, the present test revealed that the thawing method of the present invention causes less damage to cells during thawing as compared with the conventional method, resulting in less occurrence of drip.

Test Example 4 Next, another test for evaluating the quality of the thawed food according to the present invention will be described. This test was conducted by the Japan Meat Processing Association (a Ministry of Health and Welfare designated inspection agency, JAS registered rating agency). 1. Method The beef thawed according to Example 4 and the beef thawed according to Comparative Example 1 were cut into cubes each having a 1-centimeter angle, and cooked in a frying pan so that each side of the cube was evenly heated to prepare a sample. . A sensory evaluation of meat quality and flavor of this sample was carried out by 5 panelists.

2. Results Regarding the meat quality, everyone evaluated that the sample of Example 4 felt the texture unique to beef rather than Comparative Example 1, and regarding the flavor, the sample of Example 4 was richer in flavor than Juice of Comparative Example 1 and juiced.
Everyone evaluated it as Shi. In addition, as a panelist's impression after the test, it was pointed out that the sample of Example 4, in particular, had no odor of grass, which is peculiar to beef. From the results of this test, it was found that the thawing method of the present invention leads to ripening of beef and gives extremely preferable results in terms of meat quality and flavor, as compared with the conventional thawing method.

Test Example 5 Next, another test for evaluating the quality of the thawed food according to the present invention will be described. This test was conducted by the Japan Meat Processing Association. 1. Sample The sample of Example 4 and the sample of Comparative Example 1 were used.

2. Method (1) Texture-Each sample was cut into a thickness of 5 centimeters, vacuum-packed, and boiled at 75 ° C for about 50 minutes, and the center portion was cut into a thickness of 10 millimeters, and the diameter was 10 millimeters. The hardness, elasticity and adhesiveness were measured with a clearance of 2 mm using a tor plunger. (2) A method using an agricultural research-type binding meter to which water-retaining 3 MKCl is added (Japanese Food Industry Association, Food Analysis Method Editorial Committee, "Food Analysis Method", pages 718 to 719, Korin Co., Ltd., Showa 59
Year, see).

3. Results (1) texture - Hardness is a comparative Example 1 13.74kg / cm ² samples of Example 4 at 16.39kg / cm ^2, resilient samples of Example 4 with 85.1% Comparative example 1 is 80.1% sample of adhesion example 4 is 0.08 cm ² / cm ²
Comparative Example 1 was 0.05 cm ² / cm ² in. That is,
The sample of Example 4 was more chewy and more elastic than the sample of Comparative Example 1, resulting in the sensory evaluation of Test Example 4 described above. (2) Water retention The water retention of the sample of Example 4 was 73.3%, whereas that of the sample of Comparative Example 1 was 70.1%. This difference was significant, and the sample of Example 4 was more juicy than Comparative Example 1, resulting in the above-mentioned sensory evaluation of Test Example 4.

From the results of Test Example 4 and (1) and (2) above, when the defrosting method of the present invention was applied to frozen meat, the quality was higher than that of the conventional method in terms of both sensory and data aspects. It turns out that good meat is obtained.

Test Example 6 A test example for confirming the preservability of the thawed food product to which the thaw method of the present invention is applied will be described. This test was conducted by the Japan Meat Processing Association. 1. Sample The sample of Example 4 and the sample of Comparative Example 1 were used. The test was performed immediately after thawing and also after refrigeration at 0 ° C. for 6 days.

2. Method (1) Color Tone After cutting each sample, the cut surface was exposed to air for about 30 minutes, and the color tone was measured at 5 points using a spectrocolorimeter (Model CM-1000 manufactured by Minolta Co., Ltd.). An average value was calculated for each value, a value, and b value. (2) Myoglobin methification rate Mr. Bito's method (Mitsuru Bito, "Journal of the Fisheries Society of Japan", No. 36)
Vol. 4, No. 402, 1970). Each sample was finely chopped, cold distilled water (about 5 times) was added to extract meat pigment, and then 503 nanometer and 540 nanometer were extracted.
The absorbance of torr was measured to determine the proportion occupied by metmyoglobin.

3. Results (1) Immediately after thawing the color tone, in Example 4, L = 27.4, a =
While 15.3 and b = 7.8, Comparative Example 1
L = 23.3, a = 15.3, b = 7.0. Moreover, after refrigerating, in Example 4, L = 22.
2, a = 15.3, b = 6.8, whereas in Comparative Example 1, L = 21.9, a = 13.8, b = 6.3. That is, the sample of Example 4 had a brighter color tone than that of Comparative Example 1 both immediately after thawing and after refrigeration.

(2) Myoglobin Methotization Rate Immediately after thawing, Example 4 was 12%, whereas Comparative Example 1 was 13%, and Example 4 was 22% after refrigeration. In contrast to Comparative Example 1, 26%
Met. That is, the sample of Example 4 has a smaller myoglobin methation rate than that of Comparative Example 1, that is, the degree of browning is smaller than that of Comparative Example 1 immediately after thawing and after refrigeration, and the browning progresses during storage after thawing It was confirmed that it was difficult to do. In this test, it was found that the thawing method of the present invention is superior to the conventional method also in the preservability of the thawed food after thawing.

Test Example 7 A test example when the thawing method of the present invention is applied to other foods will be described. 1. Egg sample egg is separated, yolk and egg white are separated, 80 ml of yolk,
160 ml of egg white was weighed and mixed, put in a polyethylene container and frozen to obtain a sample.

2. Method Example 2 The sample was thawed by the method of the first aspect of the invention using only the primary processor. Thaw conditions are 2 ℃ and 1
It was 2 hours. Further, the sintered body was removed from the primary treatment apparatus of Example 2, and the sample was similarly thawed by the conventional method using ordinary water to obtain a comparative sample. The sample and the comparative sample were stored in a refrigerator (2 ° C) for 20 days.

3. Evaluation method (1) Stability of foam The quality of eggs is correlated with the stability of foam after foaming, and eggs with reduced freshness tend to foam, but on the other hand, stability of foam deteriorates ( See Nonami Yoshinobu, "The Egg Chemistry and Utilization," p. 114, Earth Publishing, 1960). The sample and the comparative sample were stirred for 2 minutes with a commercially available hand-held electric mixer, transferred to a graduated cylinder and the amount of foam was measured, and the change in foam amount over time was observed. This test was carried out on a sample refrigerated for 1 day after thawing and a comparative sample, and a sample refrigerated for 20 days after thawing and a comparative sample.

(2) Sponge cake test A test was conducted to evaluate the stability of foam when the sponge cake was actually baked. 75 parts by weight of each of sugar and wheat flour was mixed with 100 parts by weight of the sample or the comparative sample, put in a cake mold and baked in a gas oven for 2 hours, and the height and volume of the sponge cake produced were measured. . In addition, this test is
Samples and comparative samples refrigerated for 1 day after thawing, and 3 after thawing
The test was carried out for a sample refrigerated for a day and a comparative sample.

4. Results (1) Stability of foam For the sample refrigerated for 1 day after thawing and the comparative sample, the amount of foam was 285 ml both immediately after foaming,
After 10 minutes of foaming, the amount of the sample was 95 ml, and that of the comparative sample was 85 ml.
At 0 ml, no significant difference was observed between the sample and the comparative sample. For the sample and the comparative sample refrigerated for 20 days after thawing, the sample was 350
The comparison sample is 320 ml, whereas the comparison sample is 320 ml after 10 minutes of foaming, while the comparison sample is 130 ml and the sample is 155 ml after 1 hour of foaming. However, the comparison sample was 110 ml. That is, it was confirmed that the foam stability of the sample refrigerated for 20 days after thawing was extremely good as compared with the comparative sample.

(2) Sponge cake test After thawing, the samples refrigerated for 1 day and the comparative sample had a sponge cake height of 16 cm and a volume of 1
The comparative sample had a height of 15.3 centimeters and a volume of 1201 cubic centimeters, while it was 256 cubic centimeters. The sample and the comparative sample refrigerated for 3 days after thawing had a height of 14.8 centimeters and a volume of 1162 cubic centimeters, whereas the comparative sample had a height of 14 centimeters and a volume. 109
It was 9 cubic centimeters. That is, in each case, the foam stability of the sample was extremely good as compared with the comparative sample. From the results of this test, it was found that even when the thawing method of the present invention is applied to foods other than meat, thawing foods with high quality and good storability can be obtained.

[0108]

The present invention relates to a food thawing method and apparatus, and the present invention has the following effects. (1) By using the thawing method of the present invention, a thawed food product of high quality and good storability can be obtained with very low energy consumption and cost. (2) By using the defrosting device of the present invention, it is possible to obtain a defrosted food product of high quality and good storability, which consumes less energy and costs less.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view and a plan view showing an embodiment of a decompression device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic front view and a plan view showing another embodiment of the thawing apparatus of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 installation place 2 bases 3 footrest 4 tank holder 10 Primary processing device 11 aquarium 12 stainless steel shelves 13 Liquid Sintered Body 14 heater 20 Secondary processing device 21 storage room 22 doors 23 Sintered body for gas 24 propane gas burner 25 control panel 26 exhaust pipe 27 shelves 28 propane gas cylinder 30 refrigerator 31 Refrigerator body 32 doors 33 unit cooler

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A thawing method frozen food frozen food in contact with the liquid thawing, contacting said frozen food to a liquid in contact with the sintered body containing zeolites, it
A multi-layered ice layer can be formed on the outer surface of frozen foods.
When a method of thawing frozen food, characterized that you thawed frozen food by dissolving it. 2. A method for thawing a frozen food product, which comprises thawing a frozen food product in contact with a liquid and then thawing it in contact with a heated gas.
A is, Rukoto the frozen food is brought into contact with the liquid in contact with the sintered body containing zeolite, whereby the outer freezing food
A method for thawing a frozen food product, which comprises thawing a frozen food product by forming a multi-layered ice layer on the surface and then bringing it into contact with a heated gas that is burnt and heated together with a zeolite-containing sintered body. 3. The method for thawing frozen food according to claim 1, wherein the frozen food is frozen meat. 4. A liquid tank in which a liquid is stored and a frozen food is dipped, a primary treatment device having a zeolite-containing sintered body arranged at a position in contact with the liquid, and a storage chamber for storing the frozen food. A combustion type gas heating device disposed at the bottom of the storage chamber, and a secondary treatment device having a zeolite-containing sintered body heated by the gas heating device, and a frozen food containing a zeolite-containing sintered body Liquid contacted with
Contact with the body, which allows the outer surface of the frozen food to
An ice layer is generated, and then a zeolite-containing sintered body
Frozen food by contacting it with heated gas
Decompressor frozen food which has been unzipped. 5. The frozen food defrosting device according to claim 4, wherein the primary processing device and the secondary processing device are arranged in a refrigerator.