JP6186916B2 - Croutons for vegetable salad - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to croutons used as toppings for vegetable salads.

A crouton is used as a topping material for soup floats, salads, gratins, etc., and it is generally required to maintain a favorable texture that is low in water absorption and long.
As a method for producing croutons, the bread making method or the extrusion method is used. When producing croutons by the bread making method, the bread baked into a thick bread shape is allowed to cool and then cut into a predetermined shape, followed by heating and drying. It is common practice to either fry or then fry further.
In the bread-making process, thick bread is cut to produce croutons, so the croutons obtained by the conventional bread-making process are mostly made up of individual pieces from the inside of the bread, and are white or light yellow monotonous. The appearance of color was poor when used as a topping material because of its excellent color tone.

  Patent Document 1 describes that by kneading vegetables and / or fruits into a dough, it provides various colors, not only white and light yellow, and provides a flavor and flavorful croutons.

As a method for producing a harder crouton, Patent Document 2 describes that croutons are produced from high-density bread using twice or three times as much dough as normal bread. Moreover, as a method for inhibiting water absorption of croutons, Patent Documents 3 and 4 describe a method of blending a certain amount of fats and oils in bread dough, and Patent Documents 5 to 7 describe a method of coating crucible surroundings with solid fats and oils. Is described.
However, the croutons obtained by the conventional bread-making process have a monotonous color tone and therefore lack the presence of appearance. The croutons described in Patent Document 1 also have a natural flavor of wheat because of the taste of vegetables and fruits. It is a little different from the croutons where the flavor is felt. In addition, croutons produced by the methods described in Patent Documents 2 to 7 have a demerit that when used for vegetable salads, the texture is too hard or the oily and fat feeling felt in the mouth is too strong, which is not preferable. .
Furthermore, when producing croutons industrially using bread with a high specific volume to improve the texture, there is a problem that the bread is crushed during cutting with a cutting machine (such as a slicer) generally used. It was happening.

Japanese Patent No. 2929032 Japanese Patent No. 3407401 Japanese Patent Publication No.59-7294 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-179939 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-187044 JP 2002-51692 A JP 2008-67647 A

  An object of the present invention is to provide a crouton that is excellent in quality such as appearance, texture, and taste and excellent in manufacturing suitability for vegetable salads.

  As a result of intensive research to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present inventors can produce croutons having excellent quality such as appearance, texture and taste by using thinly baked bread, and are suitable for production. The present invention has been completed.

That is, the present invention relates to the following.
[1] A crouton having a bread crumb on opposite sides.
[2] A crouton that is a quadrangular prism (preferably, a substantially cubic or a substantially rectangular parallelepiped), and has a bread crumb on opposite faces of the quadrangular prism.
[3] The croutons according to [1] or [2], which are square croutons and each side has a length of 6 to 20 mm.
[4] The above [1] to [3], wherein bread dough is used to produce bread so that the thickness after baking is 8 to 24 mm, the bread is allowed to cool, and then cut and heat dried. Croutons according to any of the above.
[5] The crouton according to any one of [1] to [4] above, wherein the specific volume is 2 to 4 ml / g.
[6] A method for producing croutons, characterized in that bread dough is used to produce bread so that the thickness after baking is 8 to 24 mm, the bread is allowed to cool, and then cut and heat-dried.
[7] The method for producing croutons according to the above [6], wherein the length of one side is cut so as to be equal to the thickness of the bread after baking.
[8] The method for producing croutons according to [6] or [7] above, wherein the specific volume of the croutons is 2 to 4 ml / g.

  In the present invention, by using thinly baked bread, croutons having a bread-crumbed portion on the opposite surface can be produced, so that a crouton excellent in quality such as appearance, texture, and taste can be provided. it can. Furthermore, by using bread baked at an appropriate thickness, the bread can be prevented from being crushed during cutting, and the suitability for production can be improved.

  The croutons of the present invention are produced by a bread making method. Preferably, the bread dough is used to produce bread so that the thickness after baking is 8 to 24 mm, and the bread is allowed to cool, then cut and heat-dried.

  In the present invention, “bread dough” means bread dough mainly composed of flour. Bread dough with flour as the main ingredient is generally wheat flour, water (sometimes using milk), salt and, if necessary, fats, eggs, sugar, seasonings, etc., yeast or baking powder, or Both are added to make dough. In the present invention, grains other than wheat flour may be added if necessary, and a material for changing the taste and flavor of croutons can also be added. The additive is not particularly limited as long as it can be generally added to food. For example, dried vegetable powder, coloring agents, yeast food, emulsifiers and the like can be mentioned.

The “bread” according to the present invention is produced by placing dough in a metal baking mold and baking it. The baking may be either oven type or energization type. On the outside of the baked bread, a hard brown part called Mimi or crust is formed. The bread crumbs that are formed impart a color and roasted flavor that is characteristic of bread.
The baking temperature of the bread according to the present invention is 190 to 230 ° C, preferably 200 to 220 ° C.
The baking time of bread in the present invention is 10 to 50 minutes, preferably 20 to 40 minutes.

The thickness after baking of the bread in this invention is 8-24 mm, Preferably it is 10-18 mm, More preferably, it is 10-14 mm.
By cutting and heat-drying bread having a thickness of 8 to 24 mm after baking, a crouton having a bread portion on the opposite surface can be produced. For example, in the case of a square crouton, a crouton having at least an upper surface and a lower surface of the bread is produced by cutting so that the length of one side is the same as the thickness after baking of bread. Can do.
The drying temperature in this invention is 100-180 degreeC, Preferably it is 120-160 degreeC.
The drying time in the present invention is 10 to 60 minutes, preferably 20 to 50 minutes.

Since the croutons of the present invention have a large portion of bread occupying the surface area of the croutons, they have a visual presence and improve the texture and taste / flavor as compared with the conventional croutons. Moreover, in the manufacturing method using normal bread thickness, since the moisture value after baking is relatively high and the inside of the bread is soft, it is difficult to cut with a slicer unless it is allowed to cool for half a day or overnight. Therefore, it takes about 2 days for bread to be baked, cut and dried. On the other hand, in the manufacturing method using the thin bread of the present invention, the moisture value after baking is low and the structure is in a stable state, and it can be cut immediately after taking rough heat. The time required for drying is about one day.
Furthermore, the bread baked so that the thickness after baking becomes 8-24 mm is hard to be crushed in a cutting process.

The specific volume of croutons in the present invention means the specific volume of croutons after cutting and drying.
The specific volume of croutons in the present invention is not particularly limited, but is preferably 2 to 4 ml / g, more preferably 2.5 to 3.5 ml / g. When the specific volume is less than 2 ml / g, the texture of croutons tends to be heavy (hard), and when the specific volume is greater than 4 ml / g, the texture of croutons tends to be light.
The specific volume of croutons in the present invention is appropriately adjusted according to the blending amount of bread dough ingredients in crouton production, the weight of bread dough to be put into the baking mold, baking temperature and baking time of bread, and drying temperature and drying time after cutting. be able to.

  The croutons of the present invention can be coated with solid fats and oils according to the purpose of use. When used for vegetable salads, even croutons that are not coated with solid fats and oils sufficiently suppress water absorption into the croutons, so a crouton that is not coated with fats and oils should have a good appearance and excellent texture and taste. Particularly preferred in terms of flavor.

Although the shape of the crouton of this invention is not specifically limited, For example, what is shape | molded by the square shape is mentioned. A quadrangular prism is preferable, and a substantially cubic or a substantially rectangular parallelepiped is more preferable.
The size of the croutons of the present invention is not particularly limited, but from the viewpoint of appearance, texture, etc., the length of one side is preferably 6 to 20 mm, more preferably 7 to 16 mm. Especially preferably, it is 8-12 mm.
The croutons of the present invention can be used as topping materials for soup floats, salads, gratins, etc., and are particularly suitable for vegetable salads. Moreover, it can also be used as ingredients such as dressing.

The method for producing croutons of the present invention is a method in which bread dough is used to produce bread so that the thickness after baking is 8 to 24 mm, the bread is allowed to cool, and then cut and dried by heating.
Specifically, (1) the step of preparing bread dough, (2) after the obtained bread dough is placed in a metal baking mold and fermented, at 190-230 ° C (preferably 200-220 ° C), Baking for 10 to 50 minutes (preferably 20 to 40 minutes), producing bread so that the thickness after baking is 8 to 24 mm, (3) allowing the bread to cool and then cutting, and ( 4) A method comprising a step of drying at 100 to 180 ° C. (preferably 120 to 160 ° C.) for 10 to 60 minutes (preferably 20 to 50 minutes).
In the step (3), a crouton having at least an upper surface and a lower surface having a bread portion is produced by cutting so that the length of one side is the same as the thickness of the bread after baking.
By appropriately adjusting the blending amount of the bread dough blending component in the step (1), the weight of the bread dough in the step (2), the baking temperature and baking time of the bread, and the drying temperature and drying time in the step (4), A crouton having a specific volume of 2-4 ml / g can be produced.

  Next, the present invention will be described in more detail by way of examples. In addition, a following example demonstrates an example of this invention concretely, Comprising: This invention is not limited to this.

Examples 1-3 Production of croutons

To 100 parts of flour, 5 parts of yeast, 5 parts of sugar, 2.5 parts of emulsifier, 2 parts of salt, 1 part of lactose and 49 parts of water were mixed to prepare bread dough.
The obtained bread dough was divided | segmented with the dough weight according to each specific volume of croutons, and it put into the tray of 36 cm x 31 cm x 1.2 cm. Fermentation was carried out at 40 to 45 ° C. and humidity of 60 to 80% for 10 to 20 minutes. Thereafter, using a hand roller, the dough was thinly stretched and again fermented at 40 to 45 ° C. and a humidity of 60 to 80% for 10 to 20 minutes. The fermented dough was baked at about 200 ° C. for 20-30 minutes and then allowed to cool. The thickness of the bread after baking was 12 mm. After standing to cool, the bread was cut into 12 mm × 12 mm and dried at about 140 ° C. for 30 minutes or more to obtain croutons.

Comparative Examples 1 to 3 Production of croutons The bread dough obtained in the same manner as in Examples 1 to 3 was divided, put into a container, and fermented at 40 to 45 ° C. and humidity of 60 to 80% for 10 to 20 minutes. Next, the dough is divided by the dough weight according to each specific volume of the crouton, stretched and then rolled, put into a tray of 36 cm × 13 cm × 12 cm, and 10 to 10 at 40 to 45 ° C. and a humidity of 60 to 80%. Re-fermented for 20 minutes. The fermented dough was baked at about 200 ° C. for 20-30 minutes and then allowed to cool. The thickness of the bread after baking was 120 mm. After standing to cool, the bread was cut into 12 mm × 12 mm × 12 mm and dried at about 140 ° C. for 30 minutes or more to obtain croutons.
For Comparative Example 2, solid fats and oils (melting point: about 40 ° C.) dissolved by heating at 80 to 90 ° C. were added to the croutons obtained above, and sufficiently stirred so as to be uniformly coated. The addition amount of fats and oils was 30% by weight with respect to the dry weight of croutons. Thereafter, the croutons were cooled under cold air while stirring. The next day, lactose was added to the bread, and the whole was thoroughly stirred to obtain a fat-coated crouton.

The specific volume of the croutons obtained was determined by the following method.
The volume was calculated by measuring the length of each piece of croutons. Next, the weight of each crouton piece was weighed and obtained by the following formula.
Specific volume (ml / g) = volume (ml) / weight (g)
Table 1 shows the thicknesses of breads obtained in Examples 1 to 3 and Comparative Examples 1 to 3, the specific volume of croutons, and the presence or absence of oil coating.

(Evaluation)
About the croutons obtained in Examples 1 to 3 and Comparative Examples 1 to 3, the ratio of croutons with Mimi was obtained by calculation. Furthermore, the appearance, texture, and flavor were evaluated by three panelists. The results are shown in Table 2.
The evaluation criteria in Table 2 are as follows.
(1) Proportion of Mimi croutons:
The ratio of croutons with Mimi was calculated as follows.
In Examples 1 to 3, the bread was thinly baked so that the thickness after baking was 12 mm, and then cut to 12 mm × 12 mm, so that all croutons had a mim on both sides facing each other. Therefore, the ratio in which the croutons containing Mimi are included is 100%.
In Comparative Examples 1 to 3, the size of the bread after baking was 36 cm × 13 cm × 12 cm. By cutting the bread into 12 mm × 12 mm squares (30 rows × 11 rows × 10 rows), 3300 croutons were obtained. Among them, 220 croutons were obtained from the short side: 11 rows × 10 rows × 2 sides, and 1120 croutons were obtained from the long side: 28 rows × 10 rows × 4 sides. A total of 1340 croutons were included.
Therefore, the ratio of containing croutons with Mimi is about 41%.
(2) Appearance:
◎: Very presence ○: Presence △: No presence (3) Texture:
◎: It is crisp ○: Slightly hard or slightly light △: Too hard or too light (4) Taste / flavor:
◎: Very fragrant taste / flavor ○: Fragrant taste / flavor △: Savory taste / flavor weak or oily

  As described above, the croutons of the present invention were preferred in terms of appearance, texture, taste and flavor. In addition, the method for producing croutons of the present invention can perform the steps of baking bread, allowing the bread to cool, cut and heat-dry in about one day, and the bread is not easily crushed in the cutting process, so that it has excellent manufacturing suitability. It is.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the crouton excellent in quality, such as appearance, food texture, and taste, and excellent in manufacture aptitude, and its manufacturing method can be provided.

Claims (5)

With dough, the thickness after firing to produce a loaf of bread so that 8～24Mm, after cooling the food pan, and wherein the cutting and heat-drying, croutons method of manufacturing. The crouton manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the crouton is a square crouton. Length of one side are both characterized by cutting to be the same as the thickness of the bread after baking, a manufacturing method of croutons according to claim 1 or 2. The method for producing croutons according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein each side has a length of 6 to 20 mm. The crouton production method according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein the specific volume of the croutons is 2 to 4 ml / g.