JP5897785B2 - Method for producing intermediate moisture food, intermediate moisture food in sealed container, and method for improving texture of intermediate moisture food - Google Patents

Description

The present invention suppresses stickiness on the surface of the intermediate moisture food, and can suppress the formation of a crisp texture due to crystallization of saccharides. More specifically, the surface condition and texture of the intermediate moisture food can be controlled. Intermediate moisture foods that have the texture and elasticity that are characteristic of pre-processed foods, and that have both moderate elasticity and softness, methods for producing intermediate moisture foods in sealed containers, and methods for improving the texture of intermediate moisture foods About.

Conventionally, as an intermediate moisture food obtained by processing a pre-processing food such as a raw food containing fiber such as fruits and vegetables, for example, after freezing the cellulose in fruit slices by freezing after heat treatment or dehydration, sucrose, glucose , Water activity 0.75-0.85, water content 40-50% by weight and sugar content rate by drying what was immersed in sugar solution such as fructose and citric acid at 20-70 ° C. for 2-16 hours There is known a method of preparing a confectionery product stuffing containing fruit not exceeding 45% by weight (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
However, the filling of confectionery products containing the above fruits is sticky to eat as it is due to the relatively high water content and the influence of the acidulant in the sugar solution added to adjust the pH of the filling. There was a problem in that it adhered to the teeth. In addition, the process of loosening the cellulose in the fruit slices will partially destroy the cellulose fiber structure of the fruit, and the fiber texture that is characteristic of the fruit before processing cannot be reproduced, and the texture of the stuffing is inferior There was also a problem.

In addition, using uri as a raw material, after primary immersion in low-concentration sugar liquid, after boiling with high-concentration sugar liquid containing puree, paste, sauce or flavoring of other fruits that are different from sour and cucumber as appropriate A confection obtained by drying is known (for example, see Patent Document 2).
However, since the confectionery is a method of boiling for 60 to 180 minutes in a sugar solution containing sugar and acid, the surface of the burrs caused by the impregnated saccharides becomes sticky, or the saccharides crystallize, resulting in a crisp texture. There was a problem. In addition, because the umami is impregnated with the taste, aroma and color of the fruit, the fiber feel and freshness of the target fruit cannot be reproduced, and the flavor is poor. There was also a problem in that it felt a heat-deteriorating odor because of the method of drying after boiling.

In addition, after washing, peeling, and cored natural fruits in a sugar solution such as sugar or glucose and microwave heating, the immersed state in the sugar solution is maintained and the pulp is replaced with the sugar solution. There is known a dried confection obtained by further drying with hot air using the prepared confection (for example, see Patent Document 3).
However, in the dried confectionery produced by the above method, the product of Bx20-50 is further dried when the sugar solution is replaced while maintaining the immersion state of the sugar solution, so that the surface of the natural fruit may become sticky or heated depending on the drying method. There was a problem that a deodorizing odor was generated or the sugar was crystallized, resulting in a crisp texture. Moreover, the fiber structure of the natural fruit was destroyed by microwave heating, and there also existed a problem also in the point which reproduces the fiber feeling of the natural fruit before a process.

Further, the fruit nectar obtained by immersing the fruit in water and degassing under reduced pressure, immersing it in an aqueous solution of sugars such as glucose and sucrose, pulling it up, freeze-drying, and further immersing it after immersing it in a high-concentration sugar solution A method for producing pickles is known (for example, see Patent Document 4).
However, in the honey pickles of fruits by the above-mentioned manufacturing method, there is a problem that the final solid sugar content is 75 to 76% and the honey pickles are considerably high in concentration, and the sugar is crystallized to give a crisp texture. there were. Moreover, the fiber feeling and freshness that are the characteristics of the fruit before processing could not be reproduced.

The applicant of the present application has already set the specific water activity value and water content value of the whole food, the water content inside the food is higher than the outside of the food, and the water content difference is 1.5% by weight or more. An application has been filed for an intermediate moisture food and a method for preventing the heat-degraded odor of the intermediate moisture food by applying a powder flavor. (For example, refer to Patent Documents 5 and 6.)
However, the former intermediate moisture food was able to prevent stickiness due to the difference in moisture content between the outside and inside, but there was no freshness that is characteristic of the food before processing, and the surface condition and food of the intermediate moisture food were not. There is room for further improvement in order to obtain an intermediate moisture food that controls the feeling and has a moderately soft texture with elasticity and flexibility.
In addition, the latter method of preventing the intermediate moisture heat deterioration odor was effective in suppressing the surface stickiness of the intermediate moisture food as well as the heat deterioration odor. In addition, there is room for further improvement in order to control a texture that has both elasticity and flexibility and has an appropriate softness.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-47030 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-29938 JP-A 61-268128 JP 49-110850 A JP 2004-313110 A Japanese Patent Application No. 2006-298302

The present invention has been made in view of the circumstances as described above, and its object is to suppress the stickiness of the intermediate moisture food surface and to suppress the crispness of the saccharide from crystallization. Intermediate moisture foods that are characteristic of pre-processed foods, and that have both moderate elasticity and flexibility, and a method for producing intermediate moisture foods in sealed containers and methods for improving the texture of intermediate moisture foods To provide.

The present invention achieves the above object with an intermediate moisture food characterized by having a water activity of 0.45 to 0.8, a water content of 10 to 30% by weight and a saccharide content of 65 to 88% by weight. .

Preferably, the saccharide is sucrose, glucose and fructose.
More preferably, the sucrose content in the whole saccharide is 40 to 70% by weight. More preferably, it further contains a sour agent. Moreover, it is preferable that a citric acid acidity is 1.0 to 3.0%. Also preferably, the unprocessed food used for the intermediate moisture food is pineapple, apple, peach, pear, papaya, blueberry, cranberry, guava, litchi, kiwifruit, melon, aloe and tomato.
More preferably, the sucrose content in the whole saccharide is 20% by weight or less, and more preferably, the pre-processing foods used for the intermediate moisture food are bananas, grapes, figs, strawberries and prunes.

Moreover, this invention is a manufacturing method of the intermediate | middle moisture food whose water activity is 0.45-0.8, a water content is 10-30 weight%, and saccharides content is 65-88 weight%, Comprising: This is achieved by a method for producing an intermediate moisture food in a sealed container characterized by sequentially performing 1) to (7).
(1) Step of preparing raw food (2) Step of bleaching raw food (3) Step of primarily drying bleached food (4) Step of seasoning primary dried food (5) Seasoning A step of secondary drying of the dried food (6) a step of applying a powdered fragrance to the surface of the secondary dried food (7) a step of storing and sealing the food provided with the powdered fragrance in a packaging container

Furthermore, in the said process (6), it is preferable to apply powdered sugar or starch with a powder fragrance | flavor.

Next, the present invention adjusts the water activity to 0.45 to 0.8, the water content to 10 to 30% by weight, and the sugar content to 65 to 88% by weight. This is achieved by the texture improvement method.

The present invention also provides an intermediate moisture food having a water activity of 0.45 to 0.8, a water content of 10 to 30% by weight and a saccharide content of 65 to 88% by weight, the following step (1) It is achieved by a texture improving method for an intermediate moisture food contained in a sealed container, characterized by sequentially performing the steps (7) to (7).
(1) Step of preparing raw food (2) Step of bleaching raw food (3) Step of primarily drying bleached food (4) Step of seasoning primary dried food (5) Seasoning A step of secondary drying of the dried food (6) a step of applying a powdered fragrance to the surface of the secondary dried food (7) a step of storing and sealing the food provided with the powdered fragrance in a packaging container

That is, the present inventors, in an intermediate moisture food having a water activity of 0.45 to 0.8 and a water content of 10 to 30% by weight, contain saccharides and acidulants, and contain sucrose in the whole saccharides. Depending on the amount and method of the seasoning process, the surface condition of the intermediate moisture food may be solved in order to solve the problems inherent to the intermediate moisture food, such as the stickiness on the surface of the intermediate moisture food, or the saccharides crystallizing to give a crisp texture. In addition, we investigated the intermediate moisture foods that can control the texture and texture, the fiber texture that is characteristic of pre-processed foods, and the moderately soft texture that combines elasticity and flexibility.
Therefore, as a result of first studying the suppression of stickiness on the surface of the above-mentioned intermediate moisture food or the crisp texture, focusing on the type and content of sugars in the intermediate moisture food and the content of acidulant, A specific amount of a specific saccharide is contained, preferably a specific acidity, and a specific sucrose content in the entire saccharide can control the surface condition and texture of the intermediate moisture food. I found it. Furthermore, it has also been found that the content of the above components can be prepared by the seasoning process.
Furthermore, by applying a powder fragrance to the surface of the intermediate moisture food, not only the flavor of the powder fragrance but also the powder fragrance brings out the original flavor of the pre-processed food, prevents the heat-deteriorating odor, and the raw food immediately after eating It gives a rich flavor with a succulent feeling like pre-processing foods such as, and furthermore, by using powdered sugar or starch in combination with powdered fragrance, it can be found that the stickiness of the intermediate moisture food surface can be suppressed, The present invention has been reached.

According to the present invention, an intermediate moisture food having a water activity of 0.45 to 0.8, a water content of 10 to 30% by weight and a saccharide content of 65 to 88% by weight The characteristic fiber feeling and freshness can be reproduced, the surface moisture of the intermediate moisture food can be suppressed, and the sugar can be prevented from crystallizing and becoming a crisp texture.

Furthermore, the sucrose content in the whole saccharides contained in the intermediate moisture food is 40 to 70% by weight, thereby suppressing the stickiness on the surface of the intermediate moisture food and the texture of the saccharide crystallizing and crisp. Therefore, it is possible to control the surface state and texture of the intermediate moisture food.
Alternatively, by controlling the sucrose content in the entire saccharide contained in the intermediate moisture food to 20% by weight or less, the saccharide is prevented from crystallizing and becoming a crisp texture, and the intermediate moisture food is processed. It has both the texture and the elasticity and flexibility that are the characteristics of the pre-food, and it is possible to obtain a moderately soft texture.

Next, by adding an acidulant, in addition to the acidulant contained in the unprocessed food itself, it imparts an appropriate acidity, so the flavors of freshness, freshness, and refreshing that are characteristic of the unprocessed food Can enhance the flavor of intermediate moisture foods. Moreover, since the amount of sucrose in the intermediate moisture food can be adjusted to an appropriate amount by setting the citric acidity to 1.0 to 3.0%, the flavor of acid and sugar can be balanced. Moreover, stickiness on the surface of the intermediate moisture food can be suppressed. Therefore, it is possible to control the flavor and surface state of the intermediate moisture food.
Moreover, stickiness can be suppressed by adjusting pH in the foodstuff during processing by the usage method of acidulants, such as combined use of a citric acid and sodium citrate.

In addition, according to the method for producing an intermediate moisture food in a sealed container of the present invention, in the step of seasoning the primary dried food, the decomposition of sucrose in the intermediate moisture food and the accumulation of excess sucrose can be adjusted to an appropriate amount. Therefore, it is possible to suppress stickiness on the surface of the intermediate moisture food and to prevent the saccharide from crystallizing and becoming a crisp texture.

In addition, by applying a powder flavor to the surface of the intermediate moisture food, the powder flavor enhances the original flavor of the food before processing and, in combination with the flavor of the powder flavor itself, can give a rich flavor from the beginning of eating. . Furthermore, when producing an intermediate moisture food, a heat deterioration odor of the intermediate moisture food due to heating in a drying process or the like is prevented.

Furthermore, by applying powdered sugar or starch together with the powdered flavor, the surface moisture of the intermediate moisture food can be suppressed, and a juicy feeling can be felt more.
In addition, the intermediate moisture food of the present invention suppresses surface stickiness as described above, can be easily pinched by hand, and does not adhere to teeth when eaten.

When the stirring and mixing method is employed in the seasoning process, the outflow of nutrient components such as protein, potassium, and polyphenol can be suppressed.
In addition, according to the present invention, there is no roughness that is attached to the teeth when chewing, or crispness derived from saccharides. It has a certain texture.

The present invention will be described in detail.
First, as a conventional intermediate moisture food, a food having a moisture content of 10 to 60% by weight is known. However, the intermediate moisture food of the present invention differs from the above-mentioned general intermediate moisture food in that the water activity is adjusted to 0.45 to 0.8 and the water content is adjusted to 10 to 30% by weight. Such adjustment is important in reproducing the fiber feeling and freshness that are the characteristics of foods before processing. That is, when the water activity is less than 0.45 or the water content is less than 10% by weight, the elasticity and flexibility of the intermediate moisture food tend to be inferior, and there is a tendency to have a hard texture. If it exceeds 8 or the water content exceeds 30% by weight, the surface of the intermediate moisture food tends to be sticky. Preferably, the water activity is 0.45 to 0.75, and more preferably, the water activity is 0.45 to 0.7 along with the fiber feeling (texture) and freshness (flavor). It is desirable in terms of storage stability.

The measurement of the water activity in the intermediate moisture food of the present invention is as follows, and the measurement of the moisture content may be appropriately performed by either of the following.
(Measurement method of water activity)
An intermediate moisture food crushed with a masher, slicer, knife, etc. in a sealed container is placed in a special cup and placed in a sensor, and the equilibrium vapor pressure in the sealed container is measured by a water activity meter Lab MASTER-aw (manufactured by Sebel Hegner). ) Until the value stabilizes, and the stable value is taken as the water activity value.
(Measurement method 1 of water content)
Masher, slicer, an intermediate moisture food about 10g was crushed by a knife or the like is measured at 110 ℃ 25 minutes at infrared moisture meter FD-600 (manufactured by Kett Electric Laboratory).
(Measurement method 2 of water content)
About 3 g of intermediate moisture food crushed with a smasher, a slicer, a knife, etc. is brought to a constant weight by a vacuum heating drying method, and measured by a weight difference before and after drying. For example, measurement is performed at 108 ° C. for 3.5 hours at 1 mmHg or less with a vacuum dryer VOS-300D (manufactured by Tokyo Rika Kikai Co., Ltd.).

The pre-processing food used for the intermediate moisture food of the present invention is a generally known vegetable food having fiber such as edible fruits and edible vegetables, preferably raw food or thawed product of IQF (individual quick-frozen). is there. For example, pineapple, apple, peach, pear, mango, banana, strawberry, orange, grape, apricot, fig, jujube, miso, dates, persimmon, prunes, papaya, blueberry, cranberry, cherry, guava, litchi, kiwifruit, melon, Aloe, tomato and the like can be mentioned, and these may be appropriately selected from these. Among these, pineapple, apple, peach, pear, papaya, blueberry, cranberry, guava, litchi, kiwifruit, melon, aloe, tomato, banana, grape, fig, strawberry and prune are preferred, and suppresses stickiness on the surface of intermediate moisture food In addition, the effect of the present application is to suppress the formation of a crisp texture due to crystallization of saccharides, and to provide a texture that is moderately soft, having both the texture and elasticity and flexibility that are characteristic of foods before processing. Is preferable in that is remarkably exhibited.

The intermediate moisture food of the present invention further has a sugar content of 65 to 88% by weight, which suppresses the stickiness of the surface of the intermediate moisture food and that the sugar is crystallized to give a crisp texture. It is important in that it can be suppressed. That is, if the saccharide content in the whole intermediate moisture food is less than 65% by weight, it tends to be slightly sticky and too soft, and if it exceeds 88% by weight, it tends to be hard. Preferably, the saccharide content in the whole intermediate moisture food is 70 to 80% by weight, the above-mentioned effects are remarkably exhibited, and the fiber feeling (texture) and the characteristics that are characteristic of the food before processing It is preferable in that it can reproduce the variety (flavor).
In addition, what is necessary is just to perform calculation of the saccharide content in the intermediate | middle moisture food of this invention as follows.
(Measurement of sugar content)
It is calculated according to the following formula from the water content and Bx value of the intermediate moisture food. The Bx value is measured with a Bx meter DR-A1 (manufactured by ATAGO) with a diluted supernatant obtained by adding about 10 g of intermediate moisture food to a 10-fold amount, pulverizing and homogenizing with a homogenizer or the like.

Moreover, it is preferable that the saccharides are sucrose, glucose and fructose in terms of suppressing the stickiness on the surface of the intermediate moisture food and suppressing the saccharide from being crystallized to give a crisp texture. Among saccharides, sucrose, glucose and fructose contained in the intermediate moisture food may be derived from any source. For example, in the case of sucrose, in the production process, sucrose in a sugar solution that has permeated into the intermediate moisture food or sucrose contained in the food before processing. In the case of glucose and fructose, in the production process, sucrose in the sugar solution that has penetrated into the intermediate moisture food is decomposed, glucose and fructose in the penetrated sugar solution, and included in the pre-processing food itself Examples include those in which sucrose is decomposed, and glucose and fructose contained in the unprocessed food itself.
The saccharides contained in the intermediate moisture food of the present invention include polysaccharides of dietary fibers such as pectin, cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, sugar alcohols such as sorbitol, oligosaccharides, etc. Means that sucrose, glucose and fructose should be contained.
In addition, what is necessary is just to perform the measurement of each saccharide content in the intermediate moisture food of this invention as follows.
(Measurement method of each saccharide content)
About 10 g of intermediate moisture food is added to a 10-fold amount, pulverized and homogenized with a homogenizer or the like, and further diluted 100-fold, the solution is measured with a JK International F kit.

More preferably, the sucrose content in the whole saccharide is 40 to 70% by weight, so that the amount of sucrose, glucose and fructose in the intermediate moisture food can be adjusted to an appropriate amount, thereby suppressing the stickiness on the surface of the intermediate moisture food. And it is suitable at the point which can suppress that saccharides crystallize and become a crisp texture. In particular, pineapple, apple, peach, pear, papaya, blueberry, cranberry, guava, litchi, kiwifruit, melon, aloe, tomato, etc. It is preferable in that it can be remarkably exhibited.

The whole saccharide means the total weight of sucrose, glucose and fructose among the saccharides contained in the intermediate moisture food. Moreover, when the content of sucrose in the whole saccharide is less than 40% by weight, it tends to be soft, and when it exceeds 70% by weight, the saccharide is crystallized to give a crisp texture and the freshness (flavor) is reduced. Tend.
More preferably, the content of sucrose in the entire saccharide is 50 to 60% by weight, which is suitable in that the above-described effects are remarkably exhibited and the texture of the intermediate moisture food can be controlled. The preferable texture of the intermediate moisture food here means that there is no roughness or roughness that sticks to the teeth when chewing.
In addition, what is necessary is just to calculate the sucrose content in the whole saccharide | sugar in the intermediate moisture food of this invention as follows.
(Sucrose content in the whole sugar)
The ratio of sucrose content to the total weight of each saccharide content (sucrose, glucose, fructose) is calculated.

Preferably, the sucrose content in the entire saccharide is 20% by weight or less, which suppresses the saccharide in the intermediate moisture food from being crystallized to give a crisp texture, It is suitable in that it has a certain fiber feeling and a texture that has both elasticity and flexibility and has an appropriate softness. In particular, bananas, grapes, figs, strawberries, prunes and the like are preferable in that the effect of the present application is remarkably exhibited when the sucrose content in the entire saccharide is 20% by weight or less.

Next, it is preferable that the intermediate moisture food of the present invention further contains a sour agent. By adding an acidulant, in addition to the acidulant contained in the unprocessed food itself, it imparts an appropriate acidity, so that the flavor of the food itself, which is a characteristic of the unprocessed food, can be enhanced, and the intermediate moisture food It is suitable at the point which improves a flavor. Examples of the acidulant include organic acids such as citric acid, malic acid, fumaric acid, tartaric acid, lactic acid and acetic acid, and organic acid salts such as sodium citrate.

Furthermore, the intermediate moisture food of the present invention has a citrate acidity of 1.0 to 3.0%, and adjusts the decomposition amount of sucrose in the intermediate moisture food to an appropriate amount to give a flavor that balances acid and sugar. It is preferable in that it can suppress stickiness on the surface of the intermediate moisture food and enhances the flavor of the food itself, which is a characteristic of the food before processing. Therefore, it is desirable in that the surface condition and flavor of the intermediate moisture food can be controlled. When the citric acidity is less than 1.0%, sweetness tends to be strong, and when it exceeds 3.0%, the acidity is strong and tends to be sticky. The acidity of the citric acid is a value obtained by converting all of the acidulant and organic acid contained in the intermediate moisture food into a citric acid concentration, and it is optional to penetrate the acidulant into the intermediate moisture food during the production process. The citric acid degree in the intermediate moisture food should just be in the said range.

The citric acidity measurement in the intermediate moisture food of the present invention may be performed as follows.
(Method of measuring citric acidity)
About 10 g of intermediate moisture food is added to a 10-fold amount, and a dilute solution pulverized and homogenized with a homogenizer or the like is measured with a citrate acidity meter AT-500N-1 (manufactured by Kyoto Electronics Industry Co., Ltd.).

Next, although the intermediate moisture food of this invention is manufactured as follows, for example, it is not limited to the following method.
First, a raw food is prepared as a pre-processing food and cut into an appropriate size. In addition, what is necessary is just to remove suitably, when raw food has non-edible parts, such as a skin and a sticker. Further, after cutting, IQF (individual quick freezing) and thawing may be used.
For example, in the case of pineapple, the skin and the core are removed, and cut into a substantially bite size (diameter 20 to 40 mm × 20 to 40 mm, thickness 20 to 40 mm).
For example, in the case of bananas, skin, streaks, seeds and damaged parts are removed. Thereafter, it is cut into bite-sized pieces, but the cut may be performed after primary drying described later. Cutting after primary drying has both elasticity and flexibility, and can have a moderately soft texture, improving work efficiency, and managing the size of cut pieces of intermediate moisture food (length 15 to 35 mm) It is preferable in terms of a bite size).

In the case of bananas, it is preferable to use a fully ripened or ripened banana rather than an immature banana because the astringency of the processed intermediate moisture food can be suppressed. The indicator of a fully ripened or ripened banana has a saccharide content of 18% by weight or more, preferably 18 to 36% by weight, more preferably 24 to 30% by weight in the total weight of the banana before processing. The saccharide content is calculated from the moisture content of the banana before processing and the Bx value according to the above-described calculation formula (1).
In addition, the ripening method should just leave unripe bananas for about 3 to 5 days in a 30 degreeC thermostat.

Thereafter, the cut raw food is treated with a bleach as necessary. By treating with a bleach, browning prevention or quality safety (storage stability, etc.) of each process and product can be obtained. In particular, it is suitable for pre-processed foods such as pineapples, apples, peaches, pears, papayas, litchi, kiwifruits, melons, bananas and the like that are prone to browning.

Examples of the bleaching agent include sulfur dioxide, potassium pyrosulfite, sodium pyrosulfite, sodium sulfite and the like, which are known as sulfite solutions, and may be appropriately selected from these.
Examples of the processing method of the bleaching agent include a method of immersing the raw food in a bleaching solution or spraying the raw food, but the bleaching agent can be uniformly applied in a short time. It is preferable to immerse in a bleach solution.
Applied amount of bleaching agent, at a coverage of bleach SO ₂ converted concentration of the raw food, preferably 50 to 10000 ppm, more preferably, it is, browning prevention and of applying such a 1000~5000ppm It is suitable in terms of flavor.

Specifically, for example, in the case of pineapples, remove the core after peeling, pineapple 100kg was cut and immersed for 8 to 24 hours at 15 to 30 ° C. in 0.1% to 1% sodium metabisulfite solution 100kg, SO ₂ concentration The amount of adhesion becomes 100 to 2000 ppm in terms of conversion.
For example, in the case of a banana, when 100 kg of banana excluding the non-edible part after peeling is immersed in 200 kg of 0.5 to 3% sodium sulfite solution at 15 to 30 ° C. for 1 minute to 3 hours, it is 50 to 50% in terms of SO ₂ concentration. The adhesion amount is 5000 ppm. Moreover, it is suitable at the point which prevents the outflow of the nutrient component which a banana before a process contains and to suppress astringency when immersion time is made into 1 to 30 minutes short time immersion.
In addition, examples of pre-processing foods that do not require bleaching include blueberries, cranberries, grapes, figs, strawberries, and prunes.

Next, the bleached food is primarily dried. Although the seasoning method will be described later, when a seasoning step by soaking the seasoning liquid is employed, it is preferable in that the seasoning liquid is not diluted by the primary drying, and the seasoning can be sufficiently permeated into the food. In addition, when adopting the stirring and mixing method, the primary drying is performed by adjusting the food to a water activity of less than 0.7, concentrating the nutritional components contained in the food before processing, and improving the preservability, texture, and flavor of the intermediate moisture food. It is preferable in terms of improvement.

The drying method is not particularly limited, and drying by fluid heating, vacuum freeze drying, or the like may be selected as appropriate. Among these, drying by fluid heating is particularly preferable in that the moisture content can be easily adjusted without impairing the food texture. Drying by fluid heating is a general hot air drying device that circulates hot air, as well as a device that blows hot air directly on the object from above and below (for example, a jet zone system (continuous type) manufactured by Arakawa Seisakusho, Jet roast type (batch type, etc.), hot air convection apparatus used for coffee roasting, etc., a fan, a dryer, a hot air machine, an air conditioner, etc., and a method of spraying a food to dry it.

As a drying condition, when a seasoning process by soaking the seasoning liquid is employed, the seasoning liquid is thinned by drying until the moisture content of the food is preferably 15 to 90% by weight, more preferably 70 to 90% by weight. It is suitable in that the seasoning can be sufficiently permeated. Specifically, in the case of hot air shelf drying, which is one of drying by fluid heating, it may be dried at 60 ° C. for about 3 hours.
When the stirring and mixing method is adopted, when the food is dried until the water content is preferably 10 to 30% by weight, more preferably 10 to 20% by weight, the preservability, texture, and flavor of the intermediate moisture food It is suitable at the point which improves. Specifically, in the case of hot air shelf drying, it may be dried at 65 ° C. for about 40 hours.

Next, the food primarily dried as described above is seasoned.
As a seasoning, saccharides etc. are contained. Examples of the sugar include sucrose, glucose, fructose, isomerized sugar, tagatose, trehalose, lactose, maltose, isomerized lactose, oligosaccharide, sugar alcohol, reduced starch saccharified and other sugar sweeteners. Non-sugar sweeteners such as Stevia, Acesulfame K, Aspartame, etc. may be mentioned, and may be appropriately selected from these and used alone or in combination. Among these, sucrose, glucose, fructose, sucralose, aspartame and the like are preferably used in terms of controlling the surface condition and texture of the intermediate moisture food and improving the flavor.

The seasoning may contain a sour agent. Examples of the acidulant include organic acids such as citric acid, malic acid, fumaric acid, tartaric acid, lactic acid and acetic acid, and organic acid salts such as sodium citrate. Alternatively, a plurality of combinations may be used. Among these, the acidulant similar to the organic acid contained in the unprocessed food itself is preferably used in terms of providing freshness, freshness and refreshing feeling. For example, when food is pineapple and apple, citric acid and malic acid are exemplified. Further, when the food is peach, it is preferable to use citric acid and sodium citrate in combination to adjust the pH in the food from the viewpoint that stickiness can be suppressed.
Further, it may be applied as brewed vinegar, plum vinegar, fruit vinegar, fruit juice or the like mainly composed of the above-mentioned acidulant.
Examples of the auxiliary ingredients for the seasoning include lactic acid products, fruit juice, pulp, alcoholic beverages, stabilizers, emulsifiers, fragrances, coloring agents, various nutritional components (vitamins, minerals, dietary fiber, etc.), etc. May be used by appropriately selecting from the above.

The seasoning adhesion amount in the whole food weight after seasoning is preferably 0.1 to 40% by weight, more preferably 0.2 to 35% by weight in terms of solid content in the whole food weight after seasoning application. It is suitable in terms of flavor and texture.
In addition, the seasoning liquid in the case of adopting the seasoning process by immersing the seasoning liquid containing sugars and acidulants is preferably 10 to 70% by weight of sugars and 0.1 to 3.0% by weight of acidulants in the total weight of the seasoning liquid. It is desirable to set it to the point that the flavor of the pre-processed food itself such as freshness and refreshing feeling is enhanced, which makes it easier for the seasoning to penetrate into the food.
Moreover, the seasoning liquid in the case of adopting the stirring and mixing method with the seasoning liquid containing sucralose and the fragrance is preferably 0.1 to 1.0% by weight of sucralose and 1.0 to 20% by weight of the fragrance in the total weight of the seasoning liquid. It is desirable to set to% in terms of maintaining the shape of the food, in which the seasoning easily penetrates into the food, the seasoning liquid is uniformly dispersed.

Examples of the seasoning method include a method of immersing in a seasoning liquid and stirring and mixing.
When employing seasoning liquid immersion, it is preferable in that the seasoning liquid penetrates uniformly and obtains a good flavor. The immersion in the seasoning liquid may be performed either once or multiple times. The seasoning adhesion amount in the whole weight of the food after seasoning may be as described above in terms of solid content. For example, when the above food is immersed in the seasoning liquid for a certain period of time, the seasoning liquid is separated from the food, and then the seasoning liquid is heated. It is preferable in that it can provide a texture with fixing, elasticity and flexibility. What is necessary is just to perform heating conditions to the extent that the central article temperature of food reaches 90-100 degreeC. Examples of the separation method include centrifugation, leaving on a wire mesh, and the like, and may be appropriately selected.

As specific conditions, for example, after being immersed in a seasoning liquid at 15 to 30 ° C. for 5 to 24 hours, the seasoning liquid and the food are separated. A method of returning the separated food to a place where the seasoning liquid has been heated to 90 ° C. and heating the product at 90 ° C. for 10 minutes can be mentioned. In addition, after the above-mentioned heating, when the seasoning liquid has dropped to about 70 ° C., sour and flavoring agents are added, and when left at room temperature for 20 hours or more, the flavor of the final product is further improved, and the surface of the intermediate moisture food It is preferable in that it is possible to suppress the stickiness and to prevent the sugar from being crystallized to give a crisp texture. The dosage form of the fragrance is not particularly limited. The flavor used here is preferably the same flavor as the flavor component of the unprocessed food in terms of the flavor of the intermediate moisture food.
In addition, after giving a seasoning and heating, you may drain the seasoned food as needed. By providing the liquid draining step, it is preferable in that the seasoning can be uniformly permeated into the food to prevent variations in the quality of the final product, or the conditions of the secondary drying step described later can be relaxed. . The liquid draining method may be appropriately selected from methods such as centrifugation and leaving on a wire mesh. Moreover, the liquid draining conditions are not particularly limited, and may be performed to such an extent that the seasoning liquid does not easily fall continuously.

Further, the stirring and mixing method is preferable in that the seasoning liquid is directly sprinkled and stirred and mixed, so that the necessary minimum amount of the seasoning liquid is sufficient and the outflow of nutrient components contained in the pre-processed food can be prevented. Examples of the sprinkling method of the seasoning liquid include spraying the seasoning liquid directly and substantially uniformly. The stirring and mixing may be performed by appropriately selecting a mixing tool such as a hand or a spatula so that the primary dried food is not crushed. Moreover, the seasoning adhesion amount in the whole food weight after seasoning should just become as above-mentioned in conversion of solid content. For example, in the case of a banana, 2 to 8 wt% of the seasoning liquid in the total weight of the banana is directly sprinkled almost uniformly over 20 kg of the primary dried banana, and is stirred and mixed by hand for about 1 to 3 minutes.

Next, the seasoned food is secondarily dried.
What is necessary is just to perform the drying method by the same method as the primary drying mentioned above. Among these, drying by fluid heating is particularly easy to adjust the water content without impairing the texture of the food, suppresses the water activity of the food inherently, prevents deterioration when used as an intermediate moisture food, This is preferable in that the period can be stored.
The drying condition is that the moisture content in the food is 10 to 30% by weight, and it has both elasticity and flexibility to reproduce the texture and freshness that are the characteristics of the food before processing. It is important in terms of providing a soft texture. Specifically, in the case of hot air shelf drying which is one of drying by fluid heating, the temperature may be 50 to 70 ° C. and 1 to 50 hours.

Next, a powder flavor is applied to the surface of the secondary dried food.
The said powder fragrance | flavor is what contains a flavor component 1weight% or more in the whole powder fragrance | flavor weight, and contains the excipient | filler etc. as an auxiliary material.
The flavor component may be a natural fragrance or a synthetic fragrance, but it is desirable to contain the same fragrance component as that of the pre-processing food from the viewpoint of preventing the heat-deteriorating odor of the intermediate moisture food.

Excipients such as starch, modified starch, dextrin, gum arabic, gelatin, casein, carboxymethylcellulose, indigestible dextrin, vitamins such as vitamin B and vitamin C, and mineral powders such as magnesium and calcium The excipients in the form can be mentioned. These may be appropriately selected from these and used alone or in combination.
Among these, dextrins and indigestible dextrins are preferably used in terms of improving the mouthfeel and improving the mouth feel, especially the expression of flavor components and moisture absorption.

There are various types of powder flavors such as powder mixing type, adsorption type, solid emulsion type, microcapsule type, and spray drying type. Among these, spray drying type powder flavors are easy to handle and have good flavor component stability. This is preferable.
Specifically, as a method for preparing the spray-drying type powder fragrance, for example, a flavor component, an excipient, and, if necessary, other powder raw materials are mixed and emulsified. Subsequently, this emulsified liquid is powder-dried by spray drying (spray-drying method), whereby a powder flavor can be obtained.

The particle size of the powdered fragrance is preferably 30 to 400 microns, from the viewpoint of imparting a juicy feeling to the intermediate moisture food.

It is effective that the amount of the above-mentioned powdered fragrance is applied so as to adhere to 0.001 to 1% by weight, more preferably 0.01 to 0.1% by weight, based on the total weight of the intermediate moisture food. It is desirable in that it can prevent a heat-deteriorating odor and can impart a juicy flavor.

Examples of the method for applying the powder flavor include a revolving pan, direct stirring and mixing, and the like, as long as it can be uniformly dispersed on the intermediate moisture surface.

Moreover, you may contain powder raw materials other than the said flavor component and an excipient | filler in a powder fragrance | flavor. As the powder raw material, powdered sugar sweeteners used in normal confectionery such as sucrose, glucose, lactose, maltose, fructose and the like, powdered high intensity sweeteners such as aspartame, stevia, thaumatin, maltitol, sorbitol, erythritol, Examples thereof include sugar alcohols such as mannitol, lactitol, xylitol, and reduced palatinose, and other organic acids, amino acids, proteins, lipids, starches, etc., and these may be appropriately selected and used alone or in combination.

Moreover, when powdered sugar or starch is applied to the surface of the secondary dried food, it is preferable in terms of preventing stickiness. More preferably, when powdered sugar or starch is applied together with the powdered flavor, the intermediate moisture food is not sticky, is easy to hold when eaten by hand, and is preferred in terms of increasing juiciness. The amount of powdered sugar or starch applied to the powdered fragrance 1 by weight is such that the powdered sugar or starch adheres in an amount of 30 to 200. It is preferable in that each effect can be effectively obtained, such as prevention of stickiness and prevention of stickiness.
Moreover, when applying starch with a powder fragrance | flavor, the total application amount of both is preferably 0.01 to 10% by weight, more preferably 0.01 to 4% by weight, based on the total weight of the intermediate moisture food. It is desirable in terms of preventing stickiness and improving the appearance and flavor.
When using powder fragrance | flavor and powdered sugar or starch together, you may give separately and may mix beforehand.

The powdered sugar is not particularly limited as long as it is a powdered or granular saccharide, but the types of saccharide are the above-mentioned sucrose, isomerized sugar, tagatose, trehalose, glucose, fructose, lactose, maltose. In addition to saccharide sweeteners such as isomerized lactose, oligosaccharides, sugar alcohols, and reduced starch saccharified products, non-saccharide sweeteners such as stevia, acesulfame K, aspartame, etc., can be appropriately selected from these, These may be used alone or in combination. Among these, sucrose powder sugar is particularly preferable because it has good solubility and imparts a juicy feeling to the intermediate moisture food.
The particle size of the powdered sugar is preferably 40 to 150 microns, from the viewpoint of imparting an anti-sticking effect and a juicy feeling to the intermediate moisture food.
Moreover, as said starch, starch, such as corn, tapioca, potato, rice, these modified starches, wafer powder, etc. are mentioned.

When the intermediate moisture food is contained in a sealed container, an appropriate number of intermediate moisture foods to which the above-mentioned powder flavor is applied may be accommodated and sealed in a packaging container.
Examples of the packaging container include a heat-resistant aluminum vapor deposited pouch, a deoxygenating pouch, a can, a bottle, and the like. As an example of a product of a pouch having a deoxygenation function, for example, “Oxyguard Pouch” (“Oxyguard” is a registered trademark) manufactured by Toyo Seikan Co., Ltd. and the like can be mentioned.
The intermediate moisture food of the present invention is excellent in long-term storage stability even if it is not sterilized, but if necessary, attach an oxygen scavenger at the time of storage, replace oxygen with an inert gas, or heat sterilize after sealing You may perform sterilization etc., such as these.

Moreover, the texture improvement method of the intermediate moisture food of this invention adjusts so that a water activity may be 0.45-0.8, a water content may be 10-30 weight%, and saccharides content may be 65-88 weight%. It is. First, the texture is a mouthfeel that is felt when eating the intermediate moisture food of the present invention. Specifically, when it is chewed, it does not adhere to the teeth, there is no crispness, the texture of the food before processing, and the state of a moderately soft texture that combines elasticity and flexibility. Suppose that the texture is improved.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be specifically described based on examples.

<Examples 1-5>
(1) First, a raw pineapple is prepared as a pre-processing food, the skin and core are removed, and a pineapple piece (water content) cut into a bite size (diameter 20-40 mm × 20-40 mm, thickness 20-40 mm) 92% by weight) was prepared.
(2) Next, the pineapple pieces were immersed in a 1% sodium pyrosulfite solution for 14 hours and drained. The amount of sodium pyrosulfite attached at this time was 2000 ppm in terms of SO ₂ concentration.
(3) Next, the pineapple piece treated with the sodium pyrosulfite solution was primarily dried in a hot air shelf dryer at 60 ° C. for 3 hours to make the water content 85% by weight.
(4) Next, the primary dried pineapple pieces were immersed in the seasoning liquid shown in Table 1 below at room temperature of 20 ° C. for 5 hours, and then the seasoning liquid and the pineapple pieces were separated by a wire mesh. When the separated seasoning liquid was heated to 90 ° C., the pineapple piece was immersed again and heated at a product temperature of 90 ° C. for 10 minutes. After the heating, when the seasoning liquid dropped to about 70 ° C., a sour seasoning and a pineapple liquid flavor were added to the seasoning liquid, and left for 24 hours while being immersed in the seasoning liquid. In addition, the post-addition amounts of the acidulant and the fragrance to the seasoning are shown in Table 1 below. Thereafter, the pineapple pieces were placed on a wire mesh and drained for 10 minutes. Table 10 shows the amount of seasoning adhering (solid content converted value) in the total weight of the pineapple piece after seasoning application.
(5) Next, the pineapple pieces were subjected to secondary drying at 60 ° C. for 15 hours in a hot air shelf dryer.
(6) After taking the rough heat of the dried pineapple pieces, a mixture of pineapple pieces, pineapple powder flavor (30 to 400 microns) and sucrose powdered sugar (40 to 150 microns) is put into a revolving pan. The mixture was applied so that 0.03% by weight of the powdered flavor and 1.47% by weight of powdered sugar were attached to the total weight of the pineapple piece.
(7) Seven pineapple pieces to which the mixture of the above-mentioned powdered flavor and powdered sugar was applied were housed in an aluminum vapor deposited pouch together with an oxygen scavenger and heat sealed to obtain an intermediate moisture pineapple food in a sealed container.

<Examples 6 to 9>
Except for the drying conditions of the secondary drying hot-air shelf dryer in step (5) of Example 1, Examples 6 and 8 are 60 ° C. for 25 hours, and Examples 7 and 9 are 60 ° C. for 10 hours. In the same manner as in Example 1, an intermediate moisture pineapple food product in a sealed container was obtained.

<Examples 10 and 11>
Example 10 is immersed in a step (4) at room temperature of 20 ° C. for 5 hours, and the drying conditions of the secondary drying hot air shelf dryer in step (5). Example 10 is immersed in 20 ° C. for 1 hour, 60 ° C. An intermediate moisture pineapple food product in a sealed container was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that Example 11 was soaked at 50 ° C. for 5 hours and dried at 60 ° C. for 25 hours.

<Examples 12 and 13>
An intermediate moisture pineapple food product in a sealed container was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the seasoning composition in step (4) of Example 1 and the amount of the sour agent added later were as shown in Table 2.

<Example 14>
The seasoning composition in step (4) of Example 1 was as shown in Table 3, and an intermediate moisture pineapple food in a sealed container was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that no sour agent was added.

<Example 15>
Except not performing the process (6) of Example 1, it carried out similarly to Example 1, and obtained the intermediate | middle moisture pineapple foodstuff with a sealed container.

<Example 16>
An intermediate moisture pineapple food product in a sealed container was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the seasoning liquid composition in step (4) of Example 1 was as shown in Table 4.

<Comparative Examples 1 and 2>
A processed pineapple food in a sealed container was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the seasoning liquid composition in Step (4) of Example 1 and the amount of the sour agent added later were as shown in Table 5.

<Comparative Example 3>
(1) First, a raw pineapple is prepared as a pre-processing food, the skin and core are removed, and a pineapple piece (water content) cut into a bite size (diameter 20-40 mm × 20-40 mm, thickness 20-40 mm) 88% by weight) was prepared.
(2) Next, the pineapple pieces were immersed in a 1% sodium pyrosulfite solution for 14 hours and drained. The amount of sodium pyrosulfite attached at this time was 2000 ppm in terms of SO ₂ concentration.
(3) Next, the pineapple piece treated with the sodium pyrosulfite solution was primarily dried in a hot air shelf dryer at 60 ° C. for 3 hours to make the water content 75% by weight.
(4) Next, after the primary dried pineapple piece was cooled to about −10 ° C. at the center temperature, it was exposed to air at 30 ° C. and returned to room temperature. After soaking for a time, the seasoning liquid and the pineapple pieces were separated by a wire mesh.
(5) Next, the pineapple pieces were subjected to secondary drying at 50 ° C. for 3 hours in a vacuum dryer.
(6) A mixture of the above pineapple pieces, pineapple powder flavor (30 to 400 microns) and sucrose powder sugar (40 to 150 microns) is put into a revolving pan and rolled to bring the total weight of the pineapple pieces On the other hand, 0.03% by weight of powdered fragrance and 1.47% by weight of powdered sugar were applied so as to adhere.
(7) Seven pieces of pineapple pieces to which the mixture of the above-mentioned powder flavor and sugar was applied were housed in an aluminum vapor deposited pouch together with an oxygen scavenger and heat-sealed to obtain a processed pineapple food in a sealed container.

<Comparative example 4>
A processed pineapple food product in a sealed container was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the step (4) of Example 1 was as described below.
(4) Next, the primary dried pineapple pieces were subjected to microwave heating in the seasoning liquid shown in Example 1 of Table 1. This microwave heating was about 5 minutes until boiling, the total heating time was 10 minutes, and the frequency of the microwave used was 2450 MHz.

<Example 17>
An intermediate moisture apple food product in a sealed container was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the steps (1) and (4) of Example 1 were as described below.
(1) First, a raw apple was prepared as a pre-processing food, the skin and core were removed, and an apple piece cut into bite size was prepared.
(4) Next, the primary dried apple pieces were immersed three times in the seasoning liquid shown in Table 7 below. First, after immersing apple pieces in the primary immersion seasoning liquid boiled to 100 ° C. and soaking at 97-100 ° C. for 5 minutes, the apple pieces cut off from the seasoning liquid are transferred to another secondary immersion seasoning liquid, and 20-30 ° C. The immersion was performed for about 20 hours. Next, the apple pieces cut from the seasoning liquid were transferred to another tertiary immersion seasoning liquid, and immersed at 20 to 30 ° C. for about 20 hours. Thereafter, the apple pieces were placed on a wire mesh and drained for 10 minutes. Table 11 shows the seasoning adhesion amount (solid content converted value) in the whole apple piece weight after the seasoning application.

<Examples 18 and 19>
An intermediate moisture peach food and sealed container in a sealed container in the same manner as in Example 17 except that instead of the raw apple of Example 17, Example 18 used raw peach, and Example 19 used raw pear. An intermediate moisture pear food was obtained.

<Example 20>
Instead of hot air shelf drying at 60 ° C. for 3 hours in the primary drying step of Example 17, hot air shelf drying at 70 ° C. for 15 hours to adjust the water content in the total weight of the food to 5% by weight, followed by 80 ° C. hot water For 3 minutes, and the total weight was 115% by weight before the hot water immersion. Then, after immersing the seasoning process in the seasoning liquid shown in Table 8 at room temperature for 70 hours, the apple pieces were placed on a wire net and drained for 10 minutes. Thereafter, in the same manner as in Example 17, an intermediate moisture apple food in a sealed container was obtained.

<Example 21>
An intermediate moisture peach food product in a sealed container was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the steps (1) and (4) of Example 1 were as described below.
(1) First, raw peach was prepared as a pre-processing food. After removing the skin and seeds, it was cut in half. (Water content 88.7% by weight)
(4) Next, when the seasoning liquid 1 shown in the following Table 9 was heated to 100 ° C., the peach pieces were added and heated again to 100 ° C. over about 2 minutes. Next, the seasoning liquid 1 and the peach pieces were separated, and the separated peach pieces were put into the seasoning liquid 2 and immersed at room temperature (20 to 30 ° C.) for 20 hours. The soaked peach pieces were taken out and then further immersed in the seasoning liquid 3 at room temperature for 20 hours. After immersion, the peach piece was placed on a wire mesh and drained for 10 minutes. Table 11 shows the seasoning adhesion amount (solid content converted value) in the total weight of the peach pieces after the seasoning application.

About each intermediate | middle moisture food containing each sealed container obtained in Examples 1-21, and each sealed container containing processed food obtained in Comparative Examples 1-4, each saccharide content, water activity, water content, saccharide content, Tables 10 and 11 show the results of physical properties measurement of sucrose content and citrate content in the whole saccharide, and the amount of seasoning adhering in food after the seasoning process and sensory evaluation of each example. The sensory evaluation was performed on surface stickiness, crispness at the time of eating, texture, flavor, and heat-deteriorated odor by 20 professional panelists. In addition, each saccharide content, water activity, water content, saccharide content, sucrose content and citrate acidity in the whole saccharide were measured as follows.

(Measurement method of each saccharide content)
About 10 g of the intermediate moisture food and processed food were added to 10 times the amount, pulverized and homogenized with a homogenizer or the like, and then further diluted 100 times with a F kit manufactured by JK International.
(Measurement method of water activity)
The intermediate moisture food and processed food 10g was pulverized in a sealed container at masher housed in a dedicated cup placed in the sensor, the equilibrium vapor pressure of the water activity meter Lab MASTER-aw of the sealed vessel (manufactured by Siebel Heguna Co.) The sample was allowed to stand until the numerical value was stabilized, and the stable value was defined as the water activity value.
(Measurement method of water content)
The intermediate moisture food and processed food about 10g was pulverized by knives were measured at 110 ° C. 25 min at infrared moisture meter FD-600 (manufactured by Kett Electric Laboratory).
(Measurement of sugar content)
It calculated according to the following formula from the water content and Bx value of the intermediate moisture food and processed food. The Bx value was determined by adding approximately 10 g of intermediate moisture food and processed food to a 10-fold amount, pulverizing and homogenizing with a homogenizer, etc., and using the supernatant of the diluted solution with a Bx meter DR-A1 (manufactured by ATAGO). Measured.

(Sucrose content in the whole sugar)
The ratio of sucrose content to the total weight of each saccharide content (sucrose, glucose, fructose) was calculated.
(Method of measuring citric acidity)
About 10 g of intermediate moisture food and processed food are added to 10 times the amount, and the diluted solution that is pulverized and homogenized with a homogenizer is measured with a citrate acidity meter AT-500N-1 (manufactured by Kyoto Electronics Industry Co., Ltd.). did.

From the above results, in Examples 1 to 21, the stickiness on the surface of the intermediate moisture food was generally suppressed, and the crisp texture caused by crystallization of the saccharide was also suppressed. Moreover, it had the fiber feeling and freshness which are the characteristics of the food before processing, and it had elasticity and flexibility, and had an appropriate soft texture. In particular, Examples 1, 17 to 19, and 21 have a very good balance of acid and sugar, and the foods that are characteristic of pre-processed foods, such as freshness, freshness, and refreshing taste, stand out, and heat-degraded odors are also present. The above effect was more noticeable. In addition, when food was repeatedly pinched by hand from the container, it did not stick to the hand and did not adhere to the teeth. In addition, although Example 15 was somewhat inferior to Example 1 in terms of stickiness and heat-deteriorating odor, it was an intermediate moisture food with the effect of the present application. Further, in Example 21, the evaluation of the stickiness was further improved as compared with Example 18. On the other hand, Comparative Example 1 was inferior in terms of texture, as the crispness of the saccharides crystallized severely. Further, Comparative Examples 2 to 4 were very sticky and adhered to teeth and hands, and Comparative Examples 3 and 4 were inferior in flavor.

<Example 22>
(1) First, a raw fully-ripened banana (variety: Cavendish) from which the skin, streaks, and damaged parts were removed (water content 73 wt%) was prepared as a pre-processing food.
The ripened banana had a saccharide content of 25% by weight and a Bx value of 25.5.
(2) Next, the banana was dipped in a 3% sodium sulfite solution for 10 minutes and drained. The adhesion amount at this time was 1100 ppm in terms of SO ₂ concentration.
(3) Next, the banana treated with the sodium sulfite solution was primarily dried in a hot air shelf dryer at 65 ° C. for 40 hours, so that the water content was 20% by weight. (Water activity 0.63)
Next, the primary dried banana was cut into a bite size (about 15 to 35 mm in length).
(4) Next, 20 kg of the primary dried banana pieces were spread in a vat and 1 kg of the seasoning liquid shown in Table 12 below was directly sprinkled almost uniformly, and then stirred and mixed by hand for about 1 to 3 minutes.
Table 14 shows the seasoning adhesion amount (solid content converted value) in the whole banana weight after the seasoning application.
(5) Next, the banana pieces were subjected to secondary drying at 60 ° C. for 2 hours using a hot air shelf dryer.
(6) After taking the rough heat of the dried banana pieces, they are spread in a vat, and 0.05% by weight of powdered fragrance is sprinkled almost uniformly on the whole banana piece weight, and stirred and mixed by hand for about 1 to 3 minutes. did. The amount of the powdered fragrance attached at this time was 0.05% by weight based on the total weight of the banana pieces.
(7) Seven banana pieces to which the above-mentioned powder flavor was applied were housed in an aluminum vapor deposited pouch together with an oxygen scavenger and heat-sealed to obtain an intermediate moisture banana food in a sealed container.

<Example 23>
Instead of the powder flavor of step (6) of Example 22, a mixture of 5% by weight of powder flavor and 95% by weight of corn starch was used, except that the mixture was sprinkled with 2% by weight based on the total weight of the banana pieces. In the same manner as in No. 22, an intermediate moisture banana food in a sealed container was obtained. The adhesion amount of the powder flavor and corn starch mixture at this time was 1.95% by weight based on the total weight of the banana pieces.

<Example 24>
Intermediate moisture banana food in a sealed container in the same manner as in Example 22 except that corn starch is used instead of the powder flavor in step (6) of Example 22 and the starch is sprinkled with 2% by weight based on the total weight of the banana pieces. Got. The adhesion amount of corn starch at this time was 1.95% by weight in the total weight of the banana pieces.

<Example 25>
An intermediate moisture banana food product in a sealed container was obtained in the same manner as in Example 23, except that an immature banana was used instead of the raw ripe banana of Example 23.
The immature banana had a saccharide content of 17% by weight and a Bx value of 20.

<Example 26>
An intermediate moisture banana food product in a sealed container was obtained in the same manner as in Example 23, except that a ripened banana obtained by ripening an immature banana was used instead of the raw ripe banana of Example 23. The ripening method was left still in a thermostatic bath at 30 ° C. for 4 days.
The sugar content of the bananas was 16% by weight for unripe bananas (Bx value 19.5) and 25% by weight for ripened bananas (Bx value 25.5).

<Example 27>
An intermediate moisture banana food in a sealed container was obtained in the same manner as in Example 23 except that steps (3) to (5) of Example 23 were as described below.
(3) Next, the banana treated with the sodium sulfite solution was primarily dried in a hot air shelf dryer at 65 ° C. for 20 hours, so that the water content was 45% by weight. (Water activity 0.89)
Next, the primary dried banana was cut into a bite size (about 15 to 35 mm in length).
(4) Next, 100 kg of the primarily dried banana pieces were immersed in 200 kg of the seasoning liquid shown in Table 13 below at 25 ° C. for 2 hours, and then the banana pieces were placed on a wire mesh and drained for 10 minutes. Table 14 shows the amount of seasoning adhesion (solid content converted value) in the total weight of the banana pieces after the seasoning application.
(5) Next, the banana pieces were subjected to secondary drying at 60 ° C. for 20 hours using a hot air shelf dryer.

<Example 28>
An intermediate moisture banana food containing a sealed container was obtained in the same manner as in Example 27 except that the seasoning liquid immersion in step (4) of Example 27 was performed for 20 hours.

About the intermediate moisture food containing each sealed container obtained in Examples 22 to 28, the saccharide content before processing, each saccharide content after processing, water activity, water content, saccharide content, Table 14 shows the results of measurement of physical properties of sugar content and citric acidity, the amount of seasoning adhering in the food after the seasoning process, the amount of nutrient components in the intermediate moisture food after processing, and the sensory evaluation of each example. The sensory evaluation was performed for surface stickiness, crispness at the time of eating, texture, flavor, heat deterioration odor and astringency by 20 expert panelists. In addition, it measured similarly to Example 1 except water content and the amount of nutrient components.

(Measurement method of water content)
About 3 g of intermediate moisture food pulverized with a smasher, a slicer, a knife or the like was measured with a vacuum dryer VOS-300D (manufactured by Tokyo Rika Kikai Co., Ltd.) at 1 mmHg or less at 108 ° C. for 3.5 hours.
(Method of measuring nutrient content)
It measured using the well-known nutrient component measuring method.
Protein: Kjeldahl method Potassium: Atomic absorption spectrophotometry Polyphenol: Iron tartrate method

From the above results, in all of Examples 22 to 28, the stickiness of the surface of the intermediate moisture food was suppressed, and the crisp texture caused by crystallization of the saccharide was also suppressed. Moreover, it had both the elasticity and flexibility of a sticky banana and a moderately soft texture. In particular, Examples 22 to 24 and 26 were highly evaluated overall, but Example 25 was slightly inferior in terms of flavor because it felt astringent. In addition, Examples 27 and 28 had reduced nutrients, and Example 28 was somewhat resistant in terms of texture.

Claims (7)

An intermediate moisture food having a water activity of 0.45 to 0.8, a water content of 10 to 30% by weight, a saccharide and a sour agent, crystallization of the saccharide being suppressed, and having a fiber feeling, the saccharide The content is 65 to 88% by weight, and the saccharide contains sucrose, glucose and fructose, and the sucrose is a weight ratio of sucrose in the total weight of sucrose, glucose and fructose among the saccharides. An intermediate characterized in that the sugar content is 40 to 70% by weight, the citric acidity is 1.0 to 3.0%, and the pre-processing food used for the intermediate moisture food is pineapple , peach or pear Moisture food. Water activity is 0.45-0.8, water content is 10-30% by weight, sugar and sour agent are contained And crystallization of sugars is suppressed, and it is an intermediate moisture food having a fiber feeling, and the sugar content is 6 5 to 88% by weight, and the sugar contains sucrose, glucose and fructose, and the sugar Sucrose content is the weight ratio of sucrose in the total weight of sucrose, glucose and fructose 50 to 70% by weight and citric acidity is 1.0 to 3.0%. An intermediate moisture food characterized in that the pre-processing food used is an apple. Water activity is 0.45 to 0.8, water content is 10 to 30% by weight, saccharides are contained, crystallization of saccharides is suppressed, and it is an intermediate moisture food having a feeling of fiber, the saccharide content being Sucrose content which is 65 to 88% by weight and the saccharide contains sucrose, glucose and fructose, and is a weight ratio of sucrose in the total weight of sucrose, glucose and fructose among the saccharides Is an intermediate moisture food, characterized in that the pre-processing food used for the intermediate moisture food is a banana. The method for producing an intermediate moisture food according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the following steps (1) to (7) are sequentially performed.
(1) Step of preparing raw pineapple, apple, peach or pear (2) Step of bleaching raw food prepared in (1) (3) Step of primary drying of bleach-treated food (4 ) The step of seasoning the primary dried food after soaking the seasoning solution containing saccharides, and adding the acidulant (5) The step of secondary drying the seasoned food (6) of the secondary dried food A step of applying a powdered fragrance to the surface (7) A step of storing and sealing the food provided with the powdered fragrance in a packaging container Furthermore, in the process (6) of Claim 4, the manufacturing method of the intermediate | middle moisture food containing a sealed container which applies powdered sugar or starch with a powder fragrance | flavor. An intermediate moisture food having a water activity of 0.45 to 0.8, a water content of 10 to 30% by weight, a saccharide and a sour agent, crystallization of the saccharide being suppressed, and having a fiber feeling, the saccharide The content is 65 to 88% by weight, and the saccharide contains sucrose, glucose and fructose, and the sucrose is a weight ratio of sucrose in the total weight of sucrose, glucose and fructose among the saccharides. A method for improving the texture of an intermediate moisture food having a sugar content of 40 to 70% by weight and a citric acidity of 1.0 to 3.0%, wherein the following steps (1) to (7) are sequentially performed. A method for improving the texture of an intermediate moisture food in a sealed container.
(1) Raw pineapple, preparing a e e switch or pear (2) (1) raw food that has been prepared to process a bleaching agent in step (3) bleach-processed food product of the primary drying step (4 ) The step of seasoning the primary dried food after soaking the seasoning solution containing saccharides, and adding the acidulant (5) The step of secondary drying the seasoned food (6) of the secondary dried food A step of applying a powdered fragrance to the surface (7) A step of storing and sealing the food provided with the powdered fragrance in a packaging container Water activity is 0.45-0.8, water content is 10-30% by weight, sugar and sour agent are contained And crystallization of sugars is suppressed, and it is an intermediate moisture food having a fiber feeling, and the sugar content is 6 5 to 88% by weight, and the sugar contains sucrose, glucose and fructose, and the sugar Sucrose content is the weight ratio of sucrose in the total weight of sucrose, glucose and fructose An intermediate moisture food test with 50-70% by weight and citric acidity of 1.0-3.0%. A method for improving a texture, wherein the following steps (1) to (7) are sequentially performed. A method for improving the texture of intermediate moisture food in containers.
(1) Process of preparing raw apple
(2) Process of bleaching raw food prepared in (1)
(3) A step of primarily drying the food treated with the bleach
(4) After the primary dried food is immersed in a seasoning solution containing sugars, it is seasoned by adding a sour agent Process
(5) Secondary drying the seasoned food
(6) A step of applying a powder flavor to the surface of the secondary dried food
(7) The process of containing and sealing the food provided with the powder flavor in a packaging container