JPS62686B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a vacuum frying apparatus that can deep-fry foods without impairing their appearance or flavor, and can obtain products that are uniform in shape or fried condition. The present invention relates to a vacuum frying apparatus capable of consistently carrying out drying, frying, cooling and curing of fried products, as well as freezing treatment, all under reduced pressure.

BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, when deep-frying foods, it has been known to perform deep-frying under reduced pressure in consideration of deterioration of flavor and color of the food due to thermal denaturation during deep-frying. Furthermore, it is already known that products are drained or cooled and hardened under reduced pressure after frying, in order to suppress excessive oil absorption and shrinkage that occurs when the product is taken out to normal pressure. It is being

However, with such conventional equipment, vegetables and fruits with high moisture content and wide variation depending on the material are used as raw materials, cut into pieces as appropriate, and when fried products are prepared from this, fried tofu products are processed. Sometimes blistering or so-called rough skin occurs, which impairs the appearance of the tofu, and since it takes a long time to fry the tofu, it tends to deteriorate in flavor and discolor, and the fried tofu tends to be irregular in its condition or shape, which makes it uniform and of good quality. It was difficult to obtain a deep-fried tofu product.

In view of the current situation, the inventors of the present invention have created a product that has a uniform and good-looking appearance after frying.
Furthermore, as a result of extensive research in order to obtain fried products such as vegetables and fruits that do not deteriorate in flavor, we pre-dried the raw material slices of vegetables etc. under reduced pressure to reduce the moisture content to a level suitable for deep-fried tofu processing. It has been found that a satisfactory fried product can be obtained by frying the dried product under reduced pressure and then cooling and hardening the dried product without taking it out under normal pressure.

In addition, if a freezing treatment is applied after pre-drying and before frying, the moisture in the food evaporates during frying without causing blisters or rough skin, resulting in higher quality fried products. We also found out that.

The vacuum frying apparatus of the present invention has been devised to effectively implement both of the above findings.

That is, the reduced pressure oil frying device related to the first invention is
The pre-drying process before frying is performed using radiant heat from the oil surface, and it has the function of keeping the container containing the fried products stationary at a predetermined position above the frying tank. The food to be fried carried into the vacuum frying apparatus is dried by the radiant heat, then immersed in the frying tank by the support member, subjected to the frying process, and then moved to a shelf and left standing to be cooled and hardened. Therefore, the shelf section in the vacuum frying apparatus according to the first invention need not have a heating function as long as it has a cooling function.

The same shelf can also be used for freezing treatment before frying, and in this case, the frying pattern is drying → freezing → frying → cooling and hardening, and the fried food is ready for the above treatment. By the supporting member,
Move above the oil level → top of the shelf → inside the oil tank → top of the shelf, and move each part in this order.

Next, the vacuum oil frying device related to the second invention is:
The pre-drying process before frying is carried out on the shelf, and therefore, unlike the first invention, it does not have the function of keeping the container for storing the fried goods stationary above the frying tank. The shelf section consists of a mechanism that has both heating and cooling functions.

The fried foods carried into the vacuum frying equipment are
First, it is dried by heat transfer or radiant heat from the shelf, and then immersed in a frying tank by a support member and fried, and then moved and left on the shelf again to be cooled and hardened.

1 of the second invention is to dry and cool and harden the fried product on the same shelf, and during the frying process in the oil tank, the shelf temperature is lowered from the drying temperature to a desired low temperature. This is a vacuum oil frying device equipped with a heat transfer medium switching mechanism for lowering.

The second aspect of the invention is to dry and cool and harden the fried product on separate shelves, namely, a drying shelf with a heating function and a cooling and hardening shelf with a cooling function. This is a vacuum frying device that has both. Second
Also in the vacuum frying apparatus according to the second invention, the shelf section (in the second invention, the shelf section for cooling and hardening) can be used for freezing treatment before frying processing, and the same treatment is carried out. When using the device 1, the fried food is stored on the upper surface of the shelf (→upper shelf) (during this period, the temperature of the shelf falls to a level suitable for freezing treatment)→
Move each part in order from inside the oil tank to the top of the shelf, and
When using the above apparatus, the above parts are moved in order from the top surface of the drying shelf, the top surface of the cooling shelf, the inside of the oil tank, and the top surface of the cooling shelf using the support member.

The present invention will be sequentially described below according to illustrative embodiments.

Incidentally, FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of the first invention, and FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of the second invention.

Furthermore, FIG. 3 illustrates a second embodiment of the second invention.

First, A is a vacuum tank for low-pressure frying, and is composed of a body part 1 and a lid part 2 which is attached so as to be openable and closable.

3 is a vacuum pump connected to a vacuum tank via a suction pipe 4, and when the vacuum pump 3 is operated, a vacuum gauge 6 attached to the outside of the vacuum tank is used.
The degree of vacuum in the vacuum tank is adjusted to a desired level by manually or automatically opening and closing the valve 5 in the middle of the suction pipe 4.

Next, 7 is an oil tank filled with heating oil, and the oil tank is connected to a circulation pump 9, a heat exchanger 10, and an oil filter 1 through an oil circulation pipe 8.
1, and the system is such that oil heated to a required temperature by a heat exchanger is supplied into the oil tank at any time and is circulated.

The heating conditions in the drying process using radiant heat from the oil surface can be set as appropriate depending on the resting position of the container for filling the fried food on the oil surface. This can also be done by adjusting the amount of oil inside.

Next, reference numeral 13 in the figure is a shelf, and as mentioned above, in the first invention, the shelf has a cooling function so that fried foods are cooled and hardened or frozen on the shelf. Furthermore, in the second aspect of the invention, the shelf has both cooling and heating functions so that fried foods can be dried before being fried, cooled and hardened, or frozen on the same shelf.

First, the shelf section and its cooling mechanism of the vacuum oil frying device according to the first invention will be explained with reference to FIG.

In the figure, 14 indicates a refrigerator, and the refrigerator and the shelf 1
3 is connected by a refrigerant conduit 15 so that refrigerant can circulate within the shelf. Examples of the refrigerant used include chlorofluorocarbon gas and the like.
The shelf temperature is adjusted by appropriately intermittently supplying the refrigerant to the shelf 13, and confirmed using the thermometer 16.

As for the cooling capacity of the shelf, it is sufficient to set the shelf temperature to about 10 to -10°C during cooling and hardening, and to about -40°C during freezing.

Next, the shelf section of the vacuum oil frying device and its cooling/heating mechanism related to the second invention will be explained with reference to FIG. 2.

In the figure, 17 indicates a refrigerator, and the refrigerator is connected to a brine tank 19 via a refrigerant pipe 18, and the refrigerant pipe circulates within the brine tank, forming a system that cools the brine in the tank. ing. Further, the brine is supplied and filled into the shelf section 13 through the brine conduit 21 by the brine circulation pump 20, and is further circulated to the brine tank 19 to cool the shelf section.

Furthermore, 22 in the figure is a heater, and when heating the shelf and drying the fried food on the shelf, the heater 22 is operated, and the brine tank 1
By interrupting the supply of refrigerant into 9, the temperature of the brine increases, thereby increasing the shelf temperature. Also, based on the examination of the thermometer 16, the supply of refrigerant to the brine tank is interrupted and the heater is turned on and off.
By adjusting the appropriate combination of operations, the desired shelf temperature is obtained. Note that the use of the heater 22 is not limited to the above-mentioned heating of the shelf section, but can also be used at any time for temperature adjustment during cooling and curing or freezing. Conversely, when attempting to lower the shelf temperature, the heater 22 is turned off and the supply of refrigerant into the brine tank 19 is started to lower the brine temperature, and the adjustment is made in the same manner as in the case of temperature rise described above.

The above-mentioned shelf section and its cooling and heating mechanism have been described for the case where the same shelf section is used for both drying and cooling of fried products in the second invention. In the case where the cooling shelf 23 is used in a different shelf (decompression oil lifting device related to gun emplacement 4 of the patent claim), as shown in FIG. A drying shelf 25, which is similar to the shelf cooling mechanism and includes a separate heating device such as a heater 24, is installed inside the vacuum tank.

In order to improve the efficiency of the drying or cooling process on the shelf, it is desirable that the upper surface of the shelf be made of a material with the highest possible thermal conductivity.

The vacuum frying apparatus of the present invention is capable of draining oil at the same time as it cools and hardens the fried products on the shelf. In order to prevent as much as possible the oozing oil from adhering to the upper surface of the shelf due to cooling and solidification, the upper surface of the shelf is made to have an inclined structure as shown in Figure 2, and the oozing oil is allowed to flow into the oil tank. It is preferable to

This inclined structure is also convenient when cleaning the upper surface of the shelf.

Next, 26 in the figure is a condensing device connected to the refrigerator 14 or 17 via a refrigerant conduit 27,
It is installed in the middle of the suction pipe 4 mentioned above.

The water vapor sucked through the suction pipe 4 is cooled and condensed in the condensing device 26, and as a result, air containing no water vapor flows into the vacuum pump 3.

Next, 28 in the figure is a cold air blowing nozzle,
The nozzle communicates with a cold air pipe 29, which further circulates within a condensing device 26 as shown in FIG. 2, or winds around a refrigerant conduit 27 as shown in FIGS. During cooling and hardening or freezing, cold air is blown onto the fried products on the shelf, contributing to the uniform and effective cooling and hardening or freezing process.

If the cold air pipe 29 is branched into an appropriate number of branches and each branch pipe is connected to a plurality of cold air blowing nozzles (not shown), the fried product can be cooled and hardened or frozen more effectively.

The flow rate of cold air is adjusted by opening and closing a cold air adjustment valve 30 in the middle of the cold air pipe 29, and the temperature of the cold air is adjusted by introducing outside air by opening and closing an outside air adjustment valve 32 in the middle of an outside air introduction pipe 31 branched from the cold air pipe. Adjust as appropriate.

Next, numeral 33 in the figure indicates a support member, and in the first invention, the container 34 for storing fried products can be fixed and held horizontally at a predetermined position on the oil surface (see Fig. 1a).
state), and further has the function of moving and immersing the container 34 in the frying tank 7 (state b in FIG. 1), and further moving and holding it on the upper surface of the shelf (state c in FIG. 1).

In addition, in the second aspect of the invention, it is possible to reciprocate the frying material container 34 between the inside of the frying tank (state d in FIG. 2) and the top of the shelf (state e in FIG. 2). It shall have a function.

In addition, in the second aspect of the invention, as shown in FIG. 3, on the drying fence 25 (state f in FIG. 3) →
It has a function of being movable from inside the oil tank (state g in FIG. 3) to on top of the cooling shelf 23 (state h in FIG. 3).

As a specific example of the mechanism of the support member 33, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, it is supported on the side of the body of the vacuum tank, or as shown in FIG. The frying container 34 is suspended from a bendable support arm 36 attached to the vacuum tank. This is done as appropriate using an operating handle (not shown).

The container 34 for storing fried food has a lid plate (not shown) that can be opened and closed, and preferably has a perforate or mesh structure, and is made of a material with as high a thermal conductivity as possible.

In the case of the first invention, filling of the container with the fried food is carried out at any location above the state shown in FIG. Furthermore, when the container is made detachable from the support member, filling outside the vacuum tank is also possible.

Incidentally, the reduced pressure oil frying apparatus according to the second aspect of the invention, as shown in FIG. 3, may be of a continuous type instead of a so-called batch type.

At this time, the supporting member is, for example, a conveyor type, and the conveyor is installed over the drying shelf, inside the frying tank, and over the cooling and curing shelf, so that the support member is continuously under reduced pressure. Drying → deep-frying → cooling and hardening can be performed.

Although the embodiments of the vacuum frying apparatus of the present invention have been described above, it goes without saying that appropriate design changes can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

As explained in detail above, according to the vacuum frying apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to consistently perform drying, frying, and cooling hardening of foods under reduced pressure, thereby preventing damage to the appearance and flavor of foods. It is possible to fry the tofu without any fried tofu, and it is possible to obtain a high-quality fried tofu product that is uniform in the fried state. In particular, it is possible to obtain fried products with satisfactory appearance and flavor even when using vegetables and fruits as raw materials, for which high-quality fried products could not be obtained using conventional vacuum frying equipment. Furthermore, according to the vacuum frying apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to perform freezing treatment on foods after drying and before frying, thereby obtaining fried products of even better quality in shape and texture.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 - A vacuum frying device according to the first invention, FIG. 2 - A vacuum frying device according to the second invention, and FIG. 3 - A vacuum frying device (principal part) according to the second invention. A... Vacuum tank, 1... Body, 2... Lid,
3... Vacuum pump, 4... Suction pipe, 5... Valve, 6... Vacuum gauge, 7... Oil tank, 8...
Oil circulation pipe, 9... Circulation pump, 10... Heat exchanger, 11... Oil filter, 12... Oil level gauge, 13... Shelf, 14... Refrigerator, 15... Refrigerant conduit, 16... ...Thermometer, 17... Refrigerator, 18
...Refrigerant conduit, 19...Brine tank, 20...
...Brine circulation pump, 21...Brine conduit,
22... Heater, 23... Cooling shelf, 24...
... Heater, 25 ... Drying shelf, 26 ... Condensing device, 27 ... Refrigerant conduit, 28 ... Cold air blowing nozzle, 29 ... Cold air pipe, 30 ... Cold air adjustment valve, 31 ... Outside air introduction valve , 32... Outside air adjustment valve, 33... Support member, 34... Fried food filling container, 35... Moving support body, 36... Support arm.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A frying tank and a shelf are installed in a vacuum tank connected to a vacuum pump through a suction pipe, and a container for storing fried products is placed in a desired position above the tank when drying. It is movably supported by a support member so as to stand still in a certain position, and to be immersed in the same tank during frying, and to be positioned on the shelf when cooling;
Furthermore, the shelf section is connected to a cooling device outside the vacuum tank via a refrigerant conduit, and a condensing device for drain separation, which is connected to the same cooling device or a different cooling device, is installed in the middle of the suction pipe. A vacuum frying device capable of drying, frying, and cooling hardening under reduced pressure, characterized in that a cold air leak is installed above the shelf to blow cold air onto the top of the shelf. 2. The reduced pressure oil frying device according to claim 1, wherein the upper surface of the shelf portion has an inclination. 3 A frying tank and a shelf are installed in a vacuum tank connected to a vacuum pump via a suction pipe, and the products to be fried are immersed in the tank during frying, and on the shelf when drying or cooling. The shelf is movably supported by a support member so as to be located above, and the shelf is connected to a cooling device outside the vacuum tank via a refrigerant conduit, and a heating device is connected to the shelf to heat the shelf. is installed inside the same shelf or outside the vacuum tank, and furthermore, a condensing device for drain separation connected to the same cooling device or a different cooling device is installed in the middle of the suction pipe, and furthermore, cool air is blown above the shelf. A vacuum frying device capable of drying, frying, and cooling and curing under reduced pressure, characterized in that a cold air leak is installed above the shelf section. 4. Claim 3, characterized in that the cooling shelf connected to the cooling device via a refrigerant conduit and the drying shelf heated by the heating device are different from each other. vacuum frying equipment. 5. The reduced-pressure oil frying device according to claim 3, wherein the upper surface of the cooling shelf has a slope.