JPH09275954A - Heating of food having fluidity and device therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for heating a food having fluidity, capable of heating the food as a material for heating automatically to a prescribed temperature and the cooling to a desired temperature. SOLUTION: This method for heating a food having fluidity is to supply a beverage B as a material for heating to the inside of a pressurizing vessel 16, then supplying a compressed gas into the pressure vessel 16, heating the beverage by generating a joule heat in the beverage B by supplying an electric power to electrodes 21, 22 in the pressure vessel 16, guiding the heated beverage B into a cooling unit 35 conveyed by a pressure from the inside of the pressure vessel 16 for cooling the beverage B there.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a fluidity useful for heating foods having fluidity such as liquid foods, pasty foods and liquid or semi-solid foods containing solids. The present invention relates to a food heating technology.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Liquid foods such as juice and soup, pasty foods such as miso and kneaded mustard, and liquid or semi-solid liquids containing solids such as vegetables and meat such as curry roux and beef stew. When cooking fluid foods such as food or heating for sterilization,
In a state where the food having fluidity is stored in the storage container, the storage container itself is heated by using steam, gas, boiling water or the like as a heat source.

As described above, when the food stored in the storage container is heated through the storage container by heating the storage container itself, the food is heated by heat conduction of itself. Therefore, not only it takes time for heat to be transferred to all the foods in the storage container to reach a predetermined temperature, but also the flavor and texture of the foods may be impaired because it takes time.

[0004]

Particularly, in the case of foods such as soups and curry roux, 100 at the final stage of commercialization.
It may be necessary to heat to a high temperature of ℃ or more, and in that case, if the object to be heated is heated using steam or the like as a heat source through the storage container, as described above, the inside of the object to be heated is desired. By the time the temperature reaches, the temperature of the portion close to the storage container becomes higher than that temperature or is exposed to a high temperature state for a long time.

Therefore, in recent years, a heating technique has been developed in which a food having fluidity is used as an object to be heated and this is heated by Joule heat. When the object to be heated is heated by Joule heat, there is an advantage that it can be heated to a desired temperature in a short time, but in order to heat the object to be heated to a temperature of 100 ° C. or higher, it is heated to atmospheric pressure or higher. There is a problem in that it is necessary to perform heat treatment in a pressed state, and it is difficult to automatically carry out after heating the object to be heated.

Further, when heating a food, it is necessary to heat it to a predetermined temperature and then cool it rapidly to perform a desired heat treatment without impairing the flavor.

An object of the present invention is to enable a food having fluidity to be heated and automatically heated to a predetermined temperature and then cooled to a desired temperature.

The above and other objects and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the description of the present specification and the accompanying drawings.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Among the inventions disclosed in the present application, the outline of a representative one will be briefly described.
It is as follows.

That is, the heating method of the present invention comprises a step of supplying a food having fluidity as an object to be heated into a pressurized container, and a step of supplying a compressed gas into the pressurized container to apply the pressure. While the container is kept at a pressure of atmospheric pressure or higher, while stirring the object to be heated, the object to be heated is supplied to the electrodes provided in pairs in the pressurized container by supplying electric power. A heating step for generating Joule heat, and a cooling step for cooling the object to be heated by pumping the object to be heated heated in the heating step from the inside of the pressure vessel and guiding the object to be cooled into a cooling unit. It is characterized by

Further, the heating device of the present invention comprises a pressurized container for containing a food having fluidity as an object to be heated, and a compressed gas supplied to the pressurized container to expand the interior of the pressurized container. Pressurizing means for setting the pressure to atmospheric pressure or higher, an electrode provided in the pressurizing container for energizing the object to be heated to generate Joule heat, and provided in the pressurizing container, the heated object in the It is characterized by having a stirring means for stirring an object and a cooling unit for cooling the object to be heated after being heated in the pressure vessel.

In the present invention, the food is heated by supplying electric power to the electrodes in a state where the pressure inside the pressure vessel is set to a pressure equal to or higher than the atmospheric pressure. Therefore, the food is rapidly heated to a temperature of 100 ° C. or higher. can do. It is possible to quickly cool the food after it has been heated by using the pressure in the pressure vessel to pump the food to the cooling unit as it is, and to perform the heat treatment without impairing the flavor of the food. .

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a system diagram showing an overall configuration of a heating device according to an embodiment of the present invention. A liquid beverage B such as juice or soup which is an object to be heated is a raw material container 1
It is designed to be supplied within 0. This raw material container 10
A pressurized gas source 12 is connected to the raw material container 10 via a pipe 11, and a pressure for depressurizing the gas in the pressurized gas source 12 to supply a gas having a predetermined pressure to the raw material container 10 is connected to the pipe 11. A setting valve 13 and a pressure adjusting valve 14 that opens and closes the flow path in the pipe 11 to adjust the pressure in the raw material container 10 are provided. Although a nitrogen gas cylinder is used as the pressurized gas source 12 in the illustrated case, various gases other than nitrogen gas can be used as the pressurized gas, and compressed air is used as the pressurized gas. If so, the compressor will be used as a source of pressurized gas.

The raw material container 10 is connected to a pressurized container 16 by a pipe 15. The beverage B supplied into the raw material container 10 is stored in the pressurized gas source 12 with the lid 10a of the raw material container 10 closed. This gas is supplied into the raw material container 10 to increase the pressure inside the raw material container 10 and thus is pressure fed into the pressurizing container 16. However, the beverage B may be supplied into the pressure vessel 16 by the weight of the beverage B without the pressure of the raw material vessel 10 being pressure-fed.

As shown in FIG. 2, the pressure vessel 16 has a cylindrical body 17a, a bottom wall 17b and a ceiling wall 17c, and the pipe 15 is connected to the ceiling wall 17c. Cylinder 17
A circular electrode 21 is attached to the inner peripheral surface of the upper end portion of a as shown in FIG. 3A, and a disc-shaped electrode 22 is attached to the bottom wall 17b. The pressure vessel 16 is made of a resin such as polytetrafluoroethylene which is an insulating material, that is, a fluororesin.
Each of the elements 22 is made of a metal such as titanium or other conductive material. These electrodes 21, 22
A power source 23 is connected to the power source, and power is supplied from the power source 23. As the power source 23, a commercial frequency alternating current or a high frequency power source may be used.

The pressurized container 16 is connected to the pressurized gas source 12 by a pipe 24, and the pressurized gas source 1 is connected to the pipe 24.
The gas in 2 is decompressed and the gas of a predetermined pressure is supplied to the pressurizing container 16
There is provided a pressure setting valve 25 for supplying the pressure to the container and a pressure adjusting valve 26 for opening and closing the flow path in the pipe 24 to adjust the pressure in the pressurized container 16. By supplying the beverage B into the pressure vessel 16 and then supplying the gas in the pressurized gas source 12, the pressure inside the pressure vessel 16 can be set to a pressure equal to or higher than the atmospheric pressure. In order to detect the pressure in the pressure vessel 16,
A pressure sensor 27 is provided in the pipe 24. A decompression pipe 28 for exhausting the gas in the pressurized container 16 to the outside is connected to the pressurized container 16, and the pipe 28 is opened and closed to reduce the pressure of the pressurized container 16 to a predetermined pressure. A valve 29 is provided.

A motor 31 is attached to agitate the beverage B supplied into the pressure vessel 16, and a stirring shaft 32 connected to the shaft of the motor 31 is made of an insulating material such as fluororesin. The plate-shaped stirring blade 33 is fixed. In order to detect the temperature of the beverage B, a temperature sensor 34 is fixed to the pressure vessel 16 and a cutout portion is formed in the stirring blade 33 to avoid interference between the temperature sensor 34 and the stirring blade 33. There is. The stirring blade 33 may be formed of a plurality of rod-shaped members or may have a screw shape other than the shape shown in the figure.

A cooling unit 35 is connected to the bottom wall 17b of the pressurizing container 16, and the cooling unit 35 guides the beverage B discharged from the pressurizing container 16 and forms a meandering cooling tube. 36 and a unit case 37 for accommodating the cooling tube 36, and a refrigerant for cooling the cooling tube 36 is supplied into the unit case 37.

A storage tank 41 for storing the beverage B after the heating process and the cooling process is connected to the outflow end of the cooling tube 36 of the cooling unit 35. Is provided with an exhaust pipe 42 for discharging the gas therein to the outside, and the exhaust pipe 42 is provided with an exhaust valve 43 for adjusting the opening of the flow passage therein to adjust the pressure in the storage tank 41. ing. The beverage B stored in the storage tank 41 is supplied from the discharge pipe 44 to the aseptic filling machine or the packaging machine via the three-way valve 45.

FIG. 4 is a view showing a valve at the connecting portion between the pressurizing container 16 and the pipe 15. The valve body 46 for opening and closing the opening between the flow passage in the pipe 15 and the pressurizing container 16 has a valve shaft 47. The valve shaft 47 is operated by a driving means such as a pneumatic cylinder or a solenoid.
The valve body 46 is located inside the pressurizing container 16, and the valve body 46 receives a force in the direction of closing the opening due to the pressure inside the pressurizing container 16.

FIG. 5 is a view showing a valve at a connection portion between the pressure vessel 16 and the cooling tube 36 of the cooling unit 35, and a valve for opening and closing the flow passage in the cooling tube 36 and the opening portion of the pressure vessel 16. A body 48 is provided on a valve shaft 49, and like the valve shaft 47, the valve shaft 49 is operated by a driving means such as a pneumatic cylinder or a solenoid. The valve body 48 is located in the pressure vessel 16 and
8 receives a force in the direction of closing the opening due to the pressure in the pressure vessel 16.

The motor 31 has a rotor portion connected to the stirring shaft 32 and a stator portion provided outside the rotor portion to drive the rotor portion to rotate. The rotor portion and the stator portion are separated by a case member. It has a magnetic drive system that works magnetically. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the gas from leaking from the pressurized container 16. Also,
The motor 31 is provided with a cooling unit 50. By supplying the cooling liquid from the inflow port 51 and discharging the cooling liquid from the outflow port 52, the shaft of the motor 31, that is, the rotor unit is cooled.

Each of the above-mentioned valves is automatically operated by a signal from a control unit (not shown). A detection signal of the pressure sensor 27 is also sent to the control unit, and the detection signal causes the pressure adjusting valve 26 to operate. By operating, the pressure in the pressure vessel 16 is automatically set to an arbitrary value.

Next, the procedure for processing the beverage B will be described. First, after the operator opens the lid 10a of the raw material container 10 and injects a predetermined amount of the beverage B into the raw material container 10, the lid 10a is opened. close. Next, while the valve body 46 provided at the inflow portion of the pressure vessel 16 is opened and the valve body 48 provided at the outflow portion is closed, the operator operates a key or the like on the operation board (not shown). Automatically operate the device,
The gas in the pressurized gas source 12 is supplied into the raw material container 10. Since the pressure inside the raw material container 10 becomes high, the beverage B therein is supplied into the pressurizing container 16. At this time, the pressure reducing valve 29 provided in the pressure reducing pipe 28 is opened and the gas in the pressure vessel 16 is exhausted to the outside.

The beverage B is an annular electrode 2 in the pressure vessel 16.
When the pressure is supplied to the position 1, the valve body 46 is closed and the pressure reducing valve 29 is closed by a signal from the control unit. The supply amount of the beverage B into the pressurizing container 16 may be detected by a timer for the supply time of the beverage B from the raw material container 10 to the pressurizing container 16, and electric power is supplied to both electrodes 21 and 22. When the liquid level of the beverage B reaches the position of the electrode 21, an electric current will flow between the electrodes 21 and 22. Therefore, the beverage B is detected by detecting the flow.
It may be possible to detect that the supply amount of is a predetermined amount. Further, a liquid level gauge may be provided in the pressure vessel 16 and the liquid level may be detected by a signal from this liquid level gauge. Further, the liquid level may be detected by irradiating the liquid surface with ultrasonic waves.

The pressure adjusting valve 26 is opened in the state where a predetermined amount of the beverage B is supplied, and the gas in the pressurized gas source 12 is supplied to the pressure container 16 so that the pressure in the pressure container 16 is equal to or higher than the atmospheric pressure. And the pressure is maintained by closing the pressure control valve 26. Under this condition, the motor 31 is operated to rotate the stirring blade 33 to stir the beverage B, while the electrode 2
The power from the power supply 23 is supplied to the batteries 1 and 22. As a result, the beverage B is heated by Joule heat, and the beverage B is heated to a temperature of 100 ° C. or higher. When the temperature sensor 34 detects that the beverage B has risen to a predetermined temperature, the power supply is stopped.

Next, the valve body 48 is opened to guide the beverage B in the pressure container 16 into the cooling tube 36 of the cooling unit 35, and the beverage B is immediately cooled by the refrigerant supplied in the unit case 37. The cooled beverage B is supplied from the lower end thereof into the storage tank 41 via the three-way valve 45. At this time, the beverage B in the pressure vessel 16 is automatically accommodated after passing through the cooling unit 35 by the pressure of the pressurized gas supplied into the pressure vessel 16 and the weight of the liquid in the pressure vessel 16 itself. It will be supplied into the tank 41. When the amount of the beverage B in the pressurizing container 16 decreases and the pressure in the pressurizing container 16 decreases, the pressurized gas source 12 is used to pump the beverage B therein into the storage tank 41.
The gas inside may be supplied into the pressure vessel 16.

When the beverage B in the pressurizing container 16 is stored in the storage tank 41, the beverage B is transferred through the three-way valve 45.
Is supplied to an aseptic filling machine or a packaging machine. However, the beverage B may be directly supplied from the cooling unit 35 to the aseptic filling machine or the like.

As shown in the figure, in order to heat the beverage B to a temperature of 100 ° C. or higher, the pressurized gas for setting the pressure in the pressurized container 16 to atmospheric pressure or higher is used as it is, Beverage B is pumped into the storage tank 41 through the cooling unit 35, and the speed of pumping can be set to an arbitrary value by automatically controlling the opening degree of the exhaust valve 43. .

Although the invention made by the present inventor has been specifically described based on the embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. Needless to say.

For example, although a liquid beverage is used as the object to be heated in the illustrated example, if it is a fluid food such as a pasty food or a liquid or semi-solid food containing a solid substance, , Anything can be heated.

[0033]

Advantageous effects obtained by typical ones of the inventions disclosed in the present application will be briefly described.
It is as follows.

(1). Since the food itself is heated by Joule heat to heat the food, the food can be quickly heated, and the heated food can be heated by utilizing the pressure in the heating container. It can be pumped to the cooling unit.

(2) Since the food after being heated can be rapidly cooled, the heat treatment can be performed without impairing the flavor and texture of the food.

(3). Since food is heated to heat without using a heat source such as steam or gas,
Heat treatment can be performed at low cost with little energy loss.

(4). The heating process and the cooling process are automatically performed, and the heating temperature can be set to an arbitrary temperature.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a system diagram showing a heating device for food having fluidity, which is an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the heating container shown in FIG.

FIG. 3A is a perspective view showing an annular electrode,
(B) is a perspective view showing a disc-shaped electrode.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a valve provided in the inflow portion of the pressurized container.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a valve provided at the outflow portion of the pressurized container.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Raw Material Container 11 Piping 12 Pressurized Gas Source 13 Pressure Setting Valve 14 Pressure Adjusting Valve 15 Piping 16 Pressurizing Container 17a Cylindrical 17b Bottom Wall 17c Top Wall 21,22 Electrode 23 Power Supply 24 Piping 25 Pressure Setting Valve 26 Pressure Adjusting Valve 27 Pressure sensor 28 Piping 29 Pressure reducing valve 31 Motor 32 Stirring shaft 33 Stirring blade 34 Temperature sensor 35 Cooling unit 36 Cooling tube 37 Unit case 41 Storage tank 42 Exhaust pipe 43 Exhaust valve 44 Discharge pipe 45 Three-way valve 46, 48 Valve body 47, 49 Valve shaft 50 Cooling part B Beverage

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A supplying step of supplying a food having fluidity as an article to be heated into a pressurized container, and a step of supplying compressed gas into the pressurized container so that the pressure inside the pressurized container is higher than atmospheric pressure. Heat generation for generating Joule heat in the object to be heated by supplying electric power to electrodes paired in the pressure vessel while agitating the object to be heated under the condition of being kept under pressure. And a cooling step of cooling the object to be heated by guiding the object to be heated heated in the exothermic step from the inside of the pressurized container into a cooling unit. Method of heating food having. 2. A pressurized container that contains a food having fluidity as an article to be heated, and a compressed gas is supplied into the pressurized container to set the pressure in the pressurized container to atmospheric pressure or higher. A pressurizing means, an electrode provided in the pressurizing container for energizing the object to be heated to generate Joule heat, and a stirrer provided in the pressurizing container for stirring the object to be heated therein. A heating device for food having fluidity, comprising: a cooling unit that cools the object to be heated after being heated in the pressure vessel.