JPS6210148B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

The present invention relates to a method for sterilizing foods. During storage, food oxidizes or becomes contaminated with microorganisms, causing phenomena such as putrefaction and deterioration. In order to suppress this deterioration, methods have been adopted in which foods are stored in an inert gas atmosphere such as nitrogen or carbon gas. In particular, carbon dioxide gas itself has a bacteriostatic effect, so even if it is used alone, it can be preserved more than twice as much as normal preservation. However, since carbon dioxide gas does not have a bactericidal effect, its effectiveness is naturally limited. Therefore, a food sterilization treatment agent was proposed in which liquefied carbon dioxide gas and liquid ethyl alcohol were dissolved and coexisted, as seen in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 48-52920. The treatment has been shown to extend the shelf life of food products much longer than the simple treatment with carbon dioxide gas. However, in recent years, there has been a strong demand to extend the shelf life of foods. This invention was developed in response to the above-mentioned needs, and its purpose is to significantly enhance the sterilizing effect on foods. This invention is characterized in that a container containing food is filled with a mixed gas of carbon dioxide and ethyl alcohol, sealed, and then heat-treated. According to the method of this invention, carbon dioxide (hereinafter referred to as
The gas (called CO ₂ ) and ethyl alcohol dissolve in the moisture in the food, penetrate into the center of the food, and are further heated, making it possible to sterilize the entire food uniformly. Even better, after sterilization, there is carbon dioxide and ethyl alcohol vapor inside the container, and there is almost no oxygen, which prevents the growth of air-borne bacteria that can spoil food, thus preserving the shelf life of the food. In addition to bringing about the effect of
It also has the added effect of making ethyl alcohol non-flammable with CO ₂ gas and improving safety. The container described in this invention is selected depending on the form of the food, but in practice, a normal plastic bag (soft synthetic resin bag) is used. The heating means is not particularly limited, but practically,
Steam heating, hot water immersion heating, hot air heating, and ultrasonic heating are used. This heating is performed in a sterilization heating chamber, a sterilization box, a sterilization device, or the like. A mixed gas of CO ₂ and ethyl alcohol (C ₂ H ₅ OH) can be used by heating and vaporizing a mixture of liquefied CO ₂ gas and ethyl alcohol dissolved in advance, or
CO ₂ gas obtained by sublimating and vaporizing solid carbon dioxide and gaseous ethyl alcohol obtained by heating and vaporizing ethyl alcohol are mixed and used, and CO ₂ gas and gaseous ethyl alcohol are also supplied separately.
The method of use is to enclose it in a container or introduce it into a heating device or the like. The functions and effects of this invention will become clearer from the following examples. Example 1 _Packaging material used: Nylon (registered trademark) - _{polypropylene} laminate film Gas used: _C2H5OH purity 99.5% or more _CO2 gas purity 99.5% or more _CO2 gas + _C2H5OH mixed gas ( _CO2 90wt%) ,
C ₂ H ₅ OH 10wt%) Heating method: Steam heating device with temperature adjustment Heating temperature: 80℃, heating time: 15 minutes Packaging machine: Batch type vacuum packaging machine Sterilization method: Place the hanpen (80g) into a package made of the above packaging material. After vacuuming, sealing with various gases (excluding air), heating with steam under the above heating conditions, storage temperature: 15℃, storage humidity: 70%
It was stored under the following conditions. For comparison, the test was also carried out without the above heating. Results: A summary is shown in Table 1.

[Table] Example 2 Packaging material used: Nylon (registered trademark) - vinylidene chloride laminate film Gas used: Same as Example 1 Heating method: Constant temperature bath, hot water 80°C, heating time 20 minutes Packaging machine: Same sterilization as Example 1 Method: Chikuwabu was placed in a bag made of the above packaging material, vacuumed, sealed with various gases (excluding air), immersed and heated under the above heating conditions, and stored at a storage temperature of 15°C and a storage humidity of 60%. . Results: A summary is shown in Table 2.

[Table] As shown in the above-mentioned Examples, the method of the present invention can realize remarkable sterilization and the effect of extending the shelf life. The reason for this effect is, as mentioned earlier, that _CO2 gas and ethyl alcohol dissolve in the moisture in the food, penetrate to the center of the food, and then heat under this state of penetration. In particular, the purpose is to uniformly sterilize the entire food. In this invention, when looking at each element individually, it is not necessarily new, but by simultaneously applying a mixed gas of CO ₂ and ethyl alcohol and heating, a synergistic effect appears and the sterilizing effect is increased. . In addition, it is safe to use the above mixed gas (the explosion limit of ethyl alcohol and air is 3.5 ~
19vol%), and also has the effect of reducing the alcohol odor of food after sterilization.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A method for sterilizing food, which comprises filling a container containing food with a mixed gas of carbon dioxide and ethyl alcohol, sealing the container, and then subjecting the container to heat treatment.