JPS61152238A - Production of dried tea in pellet form - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain a product, by extracting tea with hot water, adding a saccharide to the extracted solution, injecting the solution to a mold, freezing the solution, lyophilizing the frozen extracted material in pellet form, and processing it into granular pellets in a fixed shape. CONSTITUTION:Tea is extracted with hot water, concentrated, blended with a saccharide (preferably dextrin, etc., having low sweetness, etc.), and injected into a mold having a large number of pellet-like dents. Preferably the dents look like cubes with sizes of about 2-5mm per side. The extracted solution is frozen in an injected state in the mold, taken out from the mold, and lyophilized while being in a frozen state.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Application of the Invention The present invention is to be used in the food manufacturing industry, particularly in the instant beverage manufacturing industry.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Conventional methods for producing instant dried teas include spray drying, drum drying, and freeze drying.

Due to recent consumers' preference for high-end products, demand for freeze-dried products with good flavor is increasing. (For example, see "Dictionary of Dry Foods," p. 336 (Shokusoku Shoten, 1984, 1st edition).

(A) If necessary, the tea extract is concentrated to adjust the solid content concentration and then frozen. A method of producing ice chips of a certain size in the form of sherbet using a crusher after rapid freezing, and then freeze-drying this ice while still in its frozen state. (Ibid. Reference No. 16
Please refer to page 2. Although this method has been put to practical use in instant coffee, it can also be applied to tea as described in JP-A-59-21346. ) (B) A tea extract is prepared in the same manner as in (A), frozen in the form of a plate, and freeze-dried as it is. A method in which the plate-shaped dried product thus obtained is crushed using a graniller, etc., and after sieving, a product having an appropriate particle size is obtained. (See JP-A No. 59-21346.) In either method, it is necessary to commercialize the product as a dried product with a constant particle size. This is because granular materials are generally easier to handle than powdered materials, have less hygroscopicity, are easier to handle, have better solubility during use, and have a larger bulk when made into products. It depends on how good it looks.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention The following problems can be pointed out when implementing the prior art.

(A) In the case of the above-mentioned ←) method, the freezing point differs depending on the composition of the extract, and when frozen under the same conditions, a significant difference in the hardness of the frozen product of the extract occurs due to variations in the composition. For this reason, it is necessary to change the crushing conditions, making it difficult to produce ice pieces of the same particle size.

In particular, when many types of tea are processed in the same plant, skill is required to switch between freezing and thawing conditions.

C) Although method (B) above has the advantage of being easy to carry out, it is difficult to grind a plate-shaped dry product into a product with a constant particle size, and it always produces non-standard powder. occurs. According to the experience of the present inventors, approximately 10-20% of powdery matter is usually generated. The powder is added to the extract and reused, but the freeze-dried product is recycled, which is wasteful in terms of cost.

Furthermore, if powdered materials are to be made into products by granulation, extra space and equipment are required for the granulation process, which is disadvantageous in terms of factory management.

29 Means for Solving the Problems In view of these problems, the present inventors have studied a method for producing pellet-shaped dried tea products that is different from conventional instant dry tea products, and have developed the present invention. completed.

In all of the conventional methods described above, the dried tea products produced are irregularly shaped granules. In the present invention, the product is obtained in the form of regular pellet-like granules.

In the case of regular-shaped granules, unlike the case of irregular-shaped granules, there is no fluctuation in particle size distribution due to operational conditions, and problems such as errors in the packaging and measuring process and changes in product appearance due to changes in bulk density can be avoided. can.

The present invention enables the production of instant tea products in the form of pellets, which have the same low moisture absorption, easy solubility, and ease of handling as conventional instant tea products made of irregularly shaped particles, and have a standardized shape that was not available in conventional products. The product provided by the invention is characterized by being novel in shape.

The present invention is carried out by combining the following steps.

(A) Step of extracting tea with hot water This step is carried out according to a conventional method. The teas referred to in the present invention include, for example, black tea, sencha, haujicha, bancha, oolong tea, barley tea, puerh tea, machiki, amachazuru tea, 〈kocha, habucha, kakicha, pigeon-barley tea, Refers to sweet tea etc.

These teas are usually extracted using a batch or multi-stage extraction method. Generally, extraction is carried out using hot water of 90°C or higher (however, in the case of Japanese tea, about 60 to 70°C is better). In the case of a batch extraction method, hot water of 5 to 10 times the amount of tea is used for 5 to 10 minutes, and in the case of a multi-stage extraction method, the same amount of hot water is used for several 10 minutes to several hours per stage. Extract.

CB) Step of preparing the extract The extract thus obtained is clarified, if necessary, by a sedimentation method, a float method, a centrifugation method, etc., and then concentrated to adjust the solid content concentration. However, this step is not necessarily essential and may be omitted in some cases, but is often necessary in order to produce a product with a uniform flavor. This is also a necessary process for barley tea and hatomugi tea, which have poor extraction efficiency.

In this step, the Brix degree of the extract is adjusted to about 5 to 15.

(C) Step of adding sugars to the extract Saccharides are added to the extract that has undergone solid content adjustment. Suitable sugars include those with weak sweetness such as dextrin, maltose, and lactose. For sugars, the Brix degree of the extract is 20 to 30.
Add so that it falls within the range of .

These saccharides have the effect of preventing the flavor from dissipating during freeze-drying and imparting toughness to the beret-like dried product after drying. The amount of sugar added should be about 3 times the solid content in the extract.

When the Brix degree of the extract is less than 20, the dry product generally has poor shape retention and is easily broken. But yellowtail.

When the temperature exceeds 30°C, the freezing point of the extract drops significantly, and the extract freezes and becomes chicks under normal freezing conditions of -20 to -40°C.

If the amount of sugar added is less than the amount of solids in the extract, the shape retention of the dried product will be poor, and if it exceeds three times the amount, the solubility (especially quick solubility in cold water) will often deteriorate. .

(D) Process of pouring the extract into a mold having a large number of pellet-shaped depressions The extract to which sugar has been added is poured into a mold having a large number of pellet-shaped depressions.

The mold is usually made of metal (for example, aluminum, stainless steel, etc., preferably coated with Teflon), plastic, or plastic (for example, polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl acetate, acrylic resin, nylon, etc.). Press the thin plate
- You can also make a lei and use it as a mold.

Examples of the shape of the recess include shapes that allow easy removal of the dried material, such as a sphere, a cylindrical shape, a cone, a cut piece of a pyramid, a hat shape, a mold shape, and the like.

As for the size, one piece should have a cube size of about 2 to 5 wn, preferably a cube of about 2 to 3 pieces.

If the shape is like this, 1 to 2 spoons will be enough for 1 cup.
8. You can also measure it with a spoon,
It is easy to handle even when packaging with a weighing and packaging machine.In addition, release accelerators, such as oils and fats, are used to facilitate the removal of dried products.
It is also acceptable to coat the mold with an edible wax or an edible surfactant.

When carrying out this process on a large scale, a large number of molds are circulated endlessly (for example, the molds are attached to a chain belt and rotated by a sprocket), and when the molds come to the surface of the circulation path, the extracted liquid The excess liquid remaining on the mold is removed by the action of a scraper (or a roller may be used) in close contact with the mold, and then passed through a tunnel freezer installed on the circulation path surface to be frozen.

When the mold passes through the tunnel freezer and comes to the bottom of the circulation path, the bottom of the mold is lightly heated (e.g. with an infrared heater, hot air, etc.) to thinly thaw the frozen part that comes into contact with the mold, allowing extraction from the mold. Allow the liquid pellets to fall.

It is a good idea to bring a vibrator into contact with the mold to vibrate it in order to accelerate the fall.

Excess liquid, water, or liquid generated at the extraction liquid injection part, the excess liquid scraping part on the upper surface of the mold, and the peeling part of the frozen product from the mold can be collected and used again.

In the injection section into the mold, a method may be adopted in which a fixed amount is always dropped onto the mold, or a method in which it is synchronized with the movement of the mold and is supplied only for a fixed period of time may be adopted.

((e) Freezing the extract The process of injecting the extract into the mold continuously was described in (D), but when injecting into each mold batchwise, each mold is placed on a stand. Fix a large number of samples and store them in a freezing chamber, or send them one by one into a tunnel freezer and freeze them.The freezing conditions are -20 to -40°C Air Plast or contact freezer (F) Frozen extract solution The process of removing the liquid from the mold The frozen extract injected into the mold is removed from the mold in a frozen state.As mentioned in (')), when using a continuous type device, it is necessary to use a rigid mold. In that case, you can simply turn the mold side down and lightly heat the bottom. If a thin tray is used as a mold, it is only necessary to apply vibration, and the mold can be easily released by appropriately bending the tray.

(G) Step of freeze-drying the frozen product The frozen extract in the form of pellets that has been released from the mold is subjected to a freeze-drying step in a frozen state. For this reason, everything from the mold release process to the freeze-drying process, including transportation, is carried out under a freezing atmosphere.
Preferably, it is carried out at a temperature of 1°C to -15°C.

Following normal freeze-drying operations, the frozen material is placed on a tray to a thickness of 1 to 2 m, and then placed in the freeze dryer.
Dry under reduced pressure of less than Torr (preferably less than 0.3 Torr). In this case, it is permissible to raise the shelf temperature and shorten the drying time within a range that does not melt the material to be dried according to a conventional method.

The pellet-shaped regular granules obtained through the above steps are packaged individually for each customer or packaged in bulk packaging such as bottles, cans, and pouches to form products.
The present invention will be specifically explained with reference to experimental examples, but the scope of the present invention is not limited to these examples.
Extract for a minute and use the suction port when hot. The Brix degree of this material was measured to be 7.4. This material was heated at 60℃ under reduced pressure.
It was concentrated to a Brix degree of 9.6.

A 9=1 mixture of Pine Index 2 (dextrin) manufactured by Matsutani Chemical Industry Co., Ltd. and lactose monohydrate was prepared, and the extract liquid was added to the mixture while it was heated to adjust the Brix degree to 22.3. When this liquid is cooled, a square of 3.5 squares on each side on the top side and 2 squares on each side on the bottom side.
．． The solution was poured into a polypropylene tray with a thickness of approximately 0.3 mm and having a number of mold depressions of 5 ffl +++ square and 2.5 mm high, and the excess liquid was removed by scraping the upper surface of the tray with a scraper.

Store in Airplast freezer at -30℃ for 1 hour, -5
The frozen product was released from the mold by slightly bending the tray in a cooling chamber at .

This was placed on an aluminum tray to a thickness of about 1.5 mm and freeze-dried for 20 hours under reduced pressure of 0.3 Torr. The freeze-dried product had a moisture content of 2.9%, was not particularly sticky to the touch, and had good solubility in cold water.

Weighed 2.42 ounces of this product and covered each of them with a moisture-proof laminated film to use as samples.

This product did not disintegrate even after 10 minutes of vibration at an acceleration of 3G, 2 vibrations, and a frequency of 500 cycles/min. Also, when dropped into water or hot water, it disintegrated and dissolved within a few seconds.

One serving of this product was dissolved in 160 liters of hot water (approximately 90°C), and a commercially available tea bag black tea extracted with the same hot water was tasted by a panel of 20 people and compared. As a result of the legal evaluation, 11 people found the main idea to be good.

Example 2 Five double glass columns filled with oolong tea 1502 were connected in series. 90 in the end column
℃ hot water is supplied, passed through the column in sequence, and the extract is taken out from the other end. Hot water at 90°C was passed through the outside of the column to keep it warm, and extraction was carried out for 30 minutes at a flow rate of 150 g/min to obtain a column with a Siprix degree of about 10.9. Use this as a mouthpiece, and use Paindex A2.75%.
Add a mixture of maltose starch syrup at a ratio of 8:2 to a solution adjusted to have a solid content of 75%, and bring the Brix degree to 2.
It was set at 5.0.

This product was poured into a tray in the same manner as in Example 1, frozen, released from the mold, and dried to obtain dried oolong tea in the form of pellets. Easy solubility and shape retention were the same as in Example 1.

A commercially available oolong tea extract and a hot water reconstituted product of this product were tested in the same manner as in Example 1. (2.6f of pellets were dissolved in 160@l hot water).

Nine people rated this product as good or bad.

Example 3 1 kg of barley tea was boiled in hot water of 90° C. for 10 minutes and then heated under suction. The Brix degree was 5.6. This product was concentrated under reduced pressure and the Brix degree was 5.6.

This material was concentrated under reduced pressure to have a Brix degree of 7.2. A mixture of Pine Index A2 and maltose starch syrup 9:1 (
75% concentration) to adjust the Brix degree to 21.0, and drying was carried out in the same manner as in Example 1.

When dropped into water or hot water, this product disintegrates and dissolves within a few seconds. It does not disintegrate according to the disintegration test of Example 1.

If this product 2.31 was reconstituted with 160.7 hot water and a comparison test was conducted with commercially available barley tea broth in the same manner as in Example 1, 10 people would rate this product as good. The oolong tea extract of Experimental Example 1 and Example 2 was concentrated under reduced pressure to have a Brix degree of 8.2. A dextrin/maltose starch syrup mixture was added to this to give a Brix degree of 29.6, and the mixture was dried in the same manner as in Example 2. When the obtained pellets were subjected to the disintegration test of Example 1, 32.6% of powder was generated. The degree was set to 19.0. It was dried in the same manner as in Example 1 to obtain pellets. When this product was subjected to the disintegration test of Example 1, 19.6% of powder was generated.

Experimental Example 3 The black tea extract of Example 1 was diluted with water, and the yellowtail and cuspidity were adjusted to 4.
．． 6. Add dextrin to increase yellowtail and chestnut content by 2
7.0 and dried in the same manner to obtain pellets.

When this product was subjected to the same disintegration test as in Example 1, no powder was generated. When you drop this thing into cold water, it disintegrates and dissolves, but 1
, takes 2 minutes.

When this product was subjected to the panel test of Example 1, no one found this product to be good.

Procedure 111 Original author (voluntary) 3, Person making the amendment 6, Number of inventions increased by the amendment 0 7, Subject of the amendment Description

Claims (1)

[Claims] Combining the following steps: (A) Extracting tea with hot water (B) Adding sugars to the extract (C) Making pellets into a mold with many depressions Step (D) of injecting the extract solution; Step (E) of freezing the extract solution while it is injected into the mold.
) a step of taking out the frozen extract from the mold; and (F) a step of subjecting the frozen extract taken out of the mold to freeze-drying in a frozen state. .