JPS60251868A - Production of pressure pumpable food to be refregerated without freezing - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for packaging and storing food products without freezing or canning the food products.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In summary, the present invention relates to an improved method of packaging and rapidly cooling foods to inhibit microbial growth for purposes of refrigeration without freezing.

Prior Art U.S. Patent No. 4,21 issued August 19, 1980
No. 8.436 discloses a method for preparing a food product for storage without refrigeration, the method comprising: a food product having a temperature of about 82°C (below 180); to about 4°C (below 40°C, but has a tendency to solidify when cooled above its freezing point), prepare a flexible container with low gas and moisture permeability, and place the above-mentioned mixture in the container. filling the food product of quality at said minimum temperature to such an extent that the food product is movable within the container and the walls of the filled container remain flexible and the container is free to deform, and the container is sealed; The container is placed in a refrigerant maintained at less than about 4° C. (below 40° C.), provided that the container is connected to any other container within the refrigerant and the container is connected within the medium independently of another container. The temperature of the food product is approximately 82°C (82°C
) to below about 4° C. (below 40° C.), but above its freezing temperature, in a trench sufficient to reduce the temperature in less than 30 minutes, thereby inhibiting the growth of microorganisms within the food product. It consists of suppressing and preventing any solidified fat exuded from the food product from accumulating on the inner walls of the container.

This method is generally effective, although certain limitations result in expensive and unworkable female lines, as well as other problems discussed in detail below.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention It is an object of the present invention to overcome the above-mentioned problems and to provide various food packaging and cooling systems and methods that are optimally economical.

In said US Pat. No. 4-21A, 436, especially with respect to the cooling process, even when the container is filled with product that cannot be pumped, the product can move freely within the container, i.e. the product is The size is such that it is movable and flowable within the container (this being the only established criterion).

Containers that can be filled with food products in this way are movable, so that the walls of the container can be freely deformed by filling only slightly less than a tightly packed container.

However, in such a nearly full condition, the thickness and volume of the food product increases significantly, and the food product is therefore extremely fluid and poorly mobile within the container unless it is maintained during the cooling process. And it is liquid. Moreover,
The above situation cannot always be avoided. Importantly, such food thickness is too great to cool the food product quickly enough to provide adequate control of microbial growth, which is essential in carrying out the method. .

Said method does not take into account the difficult problem of heat transfer from the center of the food product filling to its surface. Many foods, typically macaroni and cheese, manchef potatoes and the like, have very low flow properties as well as very low heat transfer properties, so the thickness of the food charge is limited to the center of the This is a very important requirement for rapid cooling. In the method disclosed, only very thin packs with low flowability food products can be cooled over the short temperature range and time disclosed, but the method also results in thick packages. In some cases, the core is cooled slowly enough that acceptable microbial growth occurs. With thick packaged foodstuffs, the method can only be carried out if the foodstuffs are very fluid.

According to the present invention, the average height of the food product when placed on a flat surface after sealing both ends of the container is approximately 38.1 tan (TV2 inches) ~ approx. 63.
By controlling the method of filling the container so that the container can be crushed to no more than 5 sm (2 V 2 inches),
A viable and economical method of filling containers with food products of desired quality is provided. Controlling the dimensions of the container in this manner allows the container to be highly flexible and freely deformable, independent of the flowability of the food product.

The specification also makes it possible to select the maximum effective filling volume for any container.

As previously mentioned, in the disclosed method, the container is placed in a refrigerant maintained at less than about 4°C (below 40°C). The refrigerant is advantageously cooled to a temperature of about 0.5°C (33?) to about 1°C.
(34"T) or ice-cooled water. In the system disclosed as well as in the system of the method of the invention, it is advantageous only to use water as the refrigerant. However, 1. Disclosure It is not possible to use water cooled by direct cooling to about 0.5°C (below 33) to about 1°C (below 34) or ice-chilled water as the refrigerant as suggested in the system described above. This is because containers inevitably leak or rupture and contaminate the water. When this contaminated or unclean water is circulated through a cooler or ice puncture, it contaminates them and is therefore expensive. Moreover, difficult purification treatment is required.

According to the invention, the problem of contamination is eliminated by interposing a heat exchanger between the cooling source and the tangling tank containing the cooling water. Since the cooling water is circulated through the tube side of the heat exchanger, even if the container ruptures or leaks, the cooling source remains uncontaminated, and the tube side of the heat exchanger where contaminated water is circulated is easily removed. There is a great need for purification.

Still, the use of a heat exchanger in the water circuit significantly reduces the volume of contaminated water that must be replaced and subsequently recooled, thus adding to the effective and economical effect of the process according to the invention.

Processing food to temperatures above about 82° C. (below 180° C.) during normal cooking processes either eradicates the microorganisms or reduces their ability to reproduce to the extent that the food is completely safe to consume.

However, since the food is cooled, the number of microorganisms may be reduced somewhat, especially when the temperature ranges from about 49°C (below 120°C) to about 4°C (below 120°C).
The rate of growth is extremely high as the blood temperature range is passed. Below about 4°C (about 40'F), the growth rate of microorganisms is significantly slower, but those already present are reactivated when the temperature rises again. Since the rate of microbial growth is a function of time and temperature range, food can be heated to high temperatures, approximately 82°C.
It is important to cool as quickly as possible from (approximately 180"F) to very low microbial growth conditions.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has published its 'Me 1 and Houltry Inspection Manual (M6
At and Poultry Inspection
Manual"), the product should be heated to approximately 49°C (120"F').
) to about 4° C. (below 40° C.) in less than 2 hours. However, it has been found that this cooling rate is too slow for some foods that form favorable culture media for microbial growth, such as sauces containing fat, sugar, cheese, milk, and eggs. If applied, it results in food that is substandard in taste or nutritional value or physical properties.

In the disclosed method, food is heated from about 82°C (below 180°C) to about 4°C (below 180°C) by tamp linking within 30 minutes.
Reducing the temperature to temperatures below 4-0 is only possible for very small quantities of food to be processed. For example, this process is only possible if the container is filled with a low viscosity liquid, such as a thin soup or sauce, and if the liquid maintains high fluidity during the entire cooling cycle. When the food has a relatively high viscosity, as most foods do, such foods can be heated from about 82°C (180 below) to about 4-40°C
7) In order to cool down in less than 30 minutes, the package should be so small that it is extremely cumbersome and uneconomical. In fact, sufficiently rapid cooling in such punctures or casings is necessary for some standard sanitary operations dealing with pumpable foodstuffs, i.e. liquids over a wide viscosity range and particles on that order of magnitude. It has been found that this can only be achieved with food that can be pumped through a ponzo.

Effects of the Invention By the way, according to the present invention, the container can be placed on a flat surface for about 30 minutes.
8m (approximately 1v2 inches) to approximately 64 feet (approximately 2'A inches)
Dove X7 food can be economically cooled in less than 30 minutes when the container is filled and sealed so that it can be crushed to an average food depth within the range of 30 minutes. In the practical method, the temperature is increased to approximately 82°C (approximately 18°C) within 60 minutes.
To suppress microbial growth that occurs even more rapidly within the intermediate temperature range, the temperature must be lowered by approximately 4°C (below 50°C) within 20 minutes.
It was found that either the cooling time should be lowered to less than 40 minutes) or the total cooling time should be shifted to 80 minutes. Under the conditions of the invention, the growth of harmful microorganisms inside the food product is adequately inhibited and all food products can be economically cooled.

Another advantage provided by cooling the food according to the invention is that it results in economical perishable packaging that maintains a high quality of the food even after a long service life.

Accordingly, one object of the present invention is to provide a
In a method of packaging and cooling foodstuffs for storage at 28-32 below), the objective is to define heat transfer parameters and cooling times that enable economical packaging and handling.

Another object is to provide an easily kept clean source of cooling water for carrying out the above method.

EXAMPLE As in U.S. Pat.
Cook food at a temperature of 1 month? The mixture was aspirated with a vacuum cleaner and placed in the container described in the above specification.

The containers, punctures or casings are filled in such a way that the food to be cooked is movable within the container and the walls of the container remain highly flexible and the container is free to deform. At this time,
In accordance with the present invention, the container is placed on a flat surface at approximately 38+nm'
It was filled and sealed so that it could be crushed to an average food depth within the range of 2'A inches (LV) to about 64 inches (2'A inches). By filling the container according to this criterion, the maximum actual filling volume for the container can be achieved, regardless of the flowability of the food product, and the container can be advantageously cooled within the time determined to be effective. and, in turn, can be selected to inhibit microbial growth within the food product.

After the container is filled and cooled, the container is heated to approximately 4°C (40”
Tampled in water cooled below F). The cooling water was water cooled by a cooling source such as direct expansion cooling or by an ice sink. A heat exchanger was incorporated between the cooling source and the tumbling tank containing the cooling water. As mentioned above, the heat exchanger eliminates the problem of contamination due to vessel rupture or leakage, and only the tube side of the heat exchanger through which dirty water circulates needs to be easily cleaned. Therefore, expensive and difficult cleaning procedures to clean the chiller or ice puncture were not necessary.

As noted above, the cooling cycle preferably reduces the temperature of the food item to less than 10° C. (below 50° C.) in 60 minutes or less, and further reduces the temperature to less than about 4° C. (below 40° C.) in 20 minutes or less. That is, the total cooling time was set to 80 minutes. Thus, a very economical and practical cooling cycle has been established, yet the microbial growth within the food product is sufficient to maintain high food quality even during extended refrigeration times, typically 40-45 days. suppressed.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A method of manufacturing a pumpable food product for refrigerating without freezing, comprising: (a) providing a cooked food product having a minimum temperature of about 180° C. or below (about 82° C.); Prepare a flexible nozzle container with low gas and moisture permeability, and place food of the above quality in the above container at the above minimum humidity.
After the container has been filled and sealed, it has a flat surface of 2. ~
filling to a content that results in a food filling volume that can be crushed to an average depth of food within the range of 2V2 inches (approximately 361 to 635 inches), thereby maintaining the container in a flexible nozzle and being freely deformable; ) sealing the container; e) placing the container in a refrigerant maintained at a suitable temperature so that it can move freely in the refrigerant; and f) pulling the container in the refrigerant. By making the container flexible and changing its shape so that the food product moves and crumples within the container, promoting the temperature reduction within 60 minutes and then below 40° C. (approximately 4.15° C.) such that the temperature reduction further takes place within less than 20 minutes, the total cooling time being 80 minutes; A method for producing a pressurized food product for refrigerating without freezing, characterized in that the growth of harmful microorganisms in the food product is thereby inhibited. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the refrigerant is cooling water from a heat exchanger. Convex, in a method of manufacturing a food product that is pumpable for refrigerating without freezing, a) providing a cooked food product having a minimum temperature of about 180 degrees Celsius or below (about 82 degrees Celsius); b) a low gas and humidity Prepare 7 flexible containers with permeability, and place food products of the above quality in the above containers at the above minimum temperature.
After the container is filled and sealed, the container is filled to such a level that it has a food filling volume that allows the container to remain flexible and freely deformable, 2) the container is sealed, and e) the container is heated to an appropriate temperature. f) tampling the container in the refrigerant, the refrigerant being cooling water from a heat exchanger and the container being free to move within the refrigerant; By making the container flexible and changing its shape so that the food product can move and fit together, approximately 180
Temperature reduction of the food product from below (approximately 82°C) to below 50°C (10°C) within 60 minutes and then below 4°C (approximately 4.5°C)
°C) is further facilitated to occur twice in less than 20 minutes, with a total cooling time of 80 minutes, thereby inhibiting the growth of harmful microorganisms within the food product. A method for producing a pressurized food product for refrigerating without freezing, characterized by: