JPWO2008142853A1 - Food for persons with difficulty in chewing and swallowing and method for producing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

A food that has a soft and smooth texture for the elderly and those who have difficulty chewing and swallowing, maintains the shape of the ingredients, suppresses moisture separation inside the ingredients, and suppresses the outflow of ingredients in the ingredients. A manufacturing method thereof is provided. SOLUTION: One or more thickener-containing solutions selected from alginate, pectin, xanthan gum, guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan, glucomannan, curdlan and starch penetrate into the tissue surface and the tissue interior of the ingredient. A softened food for persons with difficulty in chewing / swallowing that maintains the shape of the ingredients, with the ingredients surface and the ingredients thickened or gelled. [Selection figure] None

Description

    The present invention relates to a food that is most suitable for an elderly person, a person whose function of mastication / swallowing has deteriorated due to a cerebrovascular disorder or the like, particularly a person with difficulty in chewing or a person with difficulty swallowing, and a method for producing the food. This food is a food that has a soft and smooth texture, maintains the shape of the ingredients, suppresses separation of moisture and solids inside the ingredients, and suppresses the outflow of ingredients contained in the ingredients.

    Decreased chewing / swallowing function has led to an increase in the number of elderly people who are unable to eat normal meals and have to eat meals that do not look good or feel like mixer or paste foods, those who have difficulty chewing or have difficulty swallowing Yes. People who have difficulty chewing or having difficulty swallowing eat meals that have been finely chopped and processed to make them easy to eat, or meals that have been processed into a paste by using a mixer. These meals do not have the shape and color of normal meals, and the contents of the meals cannot be visually recognized, so it is difficult to have an appetite, and elderly people, those who have difficulty chewing, or those who have difficulty swallowing tend not to eat deliciously. It is in.

    Currently, methods using an enzyme (for example, refer to Patent Documents 1 and 2) and methods of chopping food or making it into a paste using a mixer or the like are performed as methods for softening food. Either method can refine or soften the foodstuff. However, with such ingredients, there is a risk of mixing with the ingredients in the arranged state, the ingredients collapsing and losing their original shape, the bolus crumbling in the mouth, and the ingredients entering the trachea Or increase. If the thickener is simply mixed with the cooked food containing ingredients, the jelly-like thickener-containing solution easily peels off or flows out from the ingredients surface. Moreover, since the inside of the ingredients is not thickened, it is difficult to stably obtain the function of maintaining the shape.

As a conventional technique, a jelly-containing food in which at least a part of a void portion of a base food material having a porous void is filled with a jelly-like food material containing agar or gelatin is exemplified (for example, patent document) 3). However, in this method, since the ingredients need to be impregnated and the viscosity of the agar or gelatin solution is low, the jelly easily leaks out after the impregnation and the ingredients and jelly are separated and peeled off. There is a disadvantage that the inside of the material is not thickened. In particular, in heat cooking after impregnation, the impregnated agar or gelatin leaks from the ingredients only by a slight change in the shape of the ingredients, so that the target soft and smooth texture cannot be given. Furthermore, an agar or gelatin solution having a low viscosity easily moves inside the ingredients and becomes a heterogeneous dispersed state and gels. For this reason, it becomes a material having a grainy texture and tends to be unsuitable for swallowing (these points are described in [Comparative Example 3] and [Comparative Example 4] in this specification). . Furthermore, when gelatin is used, a processing method that uses an enzyme (protease) as a method of softening meat causes the protein gelatin to be enzymatically decomposed and dissolved, so that the liquid in the ingredient flows out, and the ingredient It becomes difficult to maintain the shape of In addition, when agar is used, the jelly physical properties of the agar are brittle with respect to compression and easily break down, and water separation occurs, so that the shape maintenance of the ingredients is unstable. Therefore, the outflow of nutrients and other components from the ingredients and the disintegration and dispersion in the oral cavity cannot be suppressed.
JP2003-284522A JP 2004-89181 A JP 2004-194549 A

    It has a soft and smooth texture for the elderly and those who have difficulty chewing and swallowing, and also maintains the shape of the ingredients, suppresses separation of moisture and solids inside the ingredients, and suppresses the outflow of ingredients contained in the ingredients It is an object to provide food that has been used.

The present inventors diligently studied to solve the above problems. As a result, one or more thickeners selected from alginate, pectin, xanthan gum, guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan, glucomannan, curdlan, and starch when processing ingredients softly by pressure cooking and enzymatic reaction By impregnating the ingredient-containing solution into a gel and allowing it to gel, the water is released from the inside of the ingredient while maintaining the shape of the ingredient without affecting the original flavor and texture of the ingredient, and the ingredient It was found that dispersion, collapse, and outflow of ingredients contained in ingredients can be prevented, and the present invention has been completed.
That is, the present invention relates to a softened food for people with difficulty in chewing / swallowing, which does not significantly affect the original taste, color and smell of the ingredients, and prevents the maintenance of the shape of the ingredients and water separation. It relates to a manufacturing method.

Moreover, this invention has the following structure.
(1) One or more thickener-containing solutions selected from alginate, pectin, xanthan gum, guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan, glucomannan, curdlan and starch penetrate into the tissue surface and the tissue interior of the ingredients, A softened food for persons with difficulty in chewing / swallowing that maintains the shape of the ingredient, with the ingredient surface and the ingredient thickened or gelled.
(2) The softened food for persons with difficulty in chewing / swallowing, wherein the thickener-containing solution further contains trehalose and maintains the shape of the ingredient according to (1).
(3) A softened food for persons with difficulty in chewing / swallowing, containing trehalose in an amount of 0.1% to 20% and maintaining the shape of the ingredient according to (2).
(4) The chewing / swallowing that maintains the shape of the ingredient according to any one of (1) to (3), wherein the thickener-containing solution contains any one or more of a nutrient, a seasoning, and a medicinal ingredient Softened food for difficult people.
(5) A solution containing one or more thickeners selected from alginate, pectin, xanthan gum, guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan, glucomannan, curdlan, starch, A method for producing a softened food product for persons with difficulty in chewing / swallowing that maintains the shape of the ingredients by infiltrating the inside of the tissue and thickening or gelling the ingredient surface and the inside of the ingredient.
(6) A method for producing a softened food for persons with difficulty in chewing / swallowing, wherein the decompression load is 500 Pa to 20,000 Pa and the shape of the ingredient according to (5) is maintained.

    The present invention is a material that softens so that its shape collapses, maintaining its shape without impairing the original taste, color, and smell of the material, soft and smooth, water separation from the material and the outflow of nutrients and other components It is possible to provide a food that suppresses disintegration and dispersion of solid matter in the oral cavity. The food of the present invention can be adjusted to appropriate physical properties according to the elderly and those who have difficulty chewing / swallowing, has a good appearance, has a good appetite, can be easily chewed in the oral cavity, is easy to swallow and can be safely eaten Can be used as a softening food for people with difficulty swallowing.

    The present invention is a softened food for those who have difficulty chewing or swallowing, when processing ingredients softly by pressure cooking and enzymatic reaction, alginates, pectin, xanthan gum, guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan, glucomannan, curdlan By impregnating ingredients with one or more thickener-containing solutions selected from starch, thickening or gelling the ingredients surface and ingredients inside will affect the original flavor and texture of ingredients. In other words, it has been found that water separation from the inside of the material, dispersion and collapse of the material, and outflow of the component inherent in the material can be prevented while maintaining the shape. That is, the present invention is a softened food for persons with difficulty in chewing / swallowing that does not significantly affect the original taste, color, and smell of ingredients and prevents shape maintenance and water separation. In the ingredient obtained by the present invention, the ingredient surface and the inside of the ingredient are impregnated with a thickener-containing solution, and are thickened or gelled. In the present invention, “thickening” means a sol-like state where the viscosity is high but fluidity is not lost, and “gelation” means a soft but non-fluid state.

In order to produce the softened food for persons with difficulty in chewing / swallowing according to the present invention, the following method is used.
(1) Raw or heat-treated ingredients that are frozen, thawed or not frozen from alginate, pectin, xanthan gum, guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan, glucomannan, curdlan, starch under reduced pressure It is immersed in a solution containing 0.1 to 10% of one or more selected thickeners, and the thickener-containing solution is introduced into the ingredients. More preferably, trehalose is added to the thickener-containing solution, and the trehalose is permeated into the surface of the material tissue and inside the tissue in the same manner as the thickener.
(2) Dissolve or disperse necessary ingredients such as functional ingredients, taste ingredients, other food additives, medicinal ingredients and medical drugs in the thickener-containing solution impregnated in (1) above. These additional components may be introduced into the surface of the material structure and inside the material.
(3) Among the thickeners, for foods into which alginate or pectin is introduced, after (1) or (2), a solution containing a calcium ion concentration of 0.01 to 5% is immersed under normal pressure or high pressure. It is introduced into the ingredient surface and inside the ingredient to thicken or gel.
(4) Put the ingredients in a container. Alternatively, a solution containing a thickener or a solution obtained by adding a seasoning or the like to the thickener may be poured into the container. In addition, foods into which curdlan or starch is introduced are heat-treated to be jellied.

    In the present invention, ingredients that can be used are not particularly limited, and examples thereof include vegetables, fruits, seafood, livestock meat, eggs, and grains. These ingredients may be raw or cooked, and lyophilized.

In the present invention, the thickener-containing solution is also impregnated inside the ingredients. The thickener generally refers to a base material having a property of showing viscosity or gelling when dissolved in water, but the thickener used in the present invention has relatively viscoelasticity. Preferred are thickening polysaccharides such as alginate, pectin, xanthan gum, guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan, glucomannan, curdlan and starch. If it is these thickeners, it will not specifically limit, One type or multiple types are mixed and used. Agar may also be classified as a thickening polysaccharide, but it cannot be used because it has brittle properties during jelly formation and causes water separation and the like, resulting in unstable shape retention. Further, gellan gum, which is a thickening polysaccharide, cannot be used because it has brittle properties during jelly formation, causes water separation and the like, and its shape retention ability becomes unstable. On the other hand, starch is not normally classified as a thickening polysaccharide, but exhibits an effect that meets the object of the present invention.
The concentration of the thickener is adjusted as appropriate according to the type and ingredients of the thickener, but the alginate is 0.1 to 5%, the pectin is 0.05 to 5%, the xanthan gum is 0.1 to 10%, Guar gum is 0.1 to 5%, locust bean gum is 0.05% to 10%, carrageenan is 0.05 to 20%, glucomannan is 0.02% to 5%, curdlan is 0.2% to 10% %, Starch is preferably at a concentration of 0.5-20%. When one or more thickeners are used in combination, the amount is reduced as appropriate.

    Further, it is more preferable to soften the ingredients. Examples of the method for softening the ingredients include heat and pressure cooking with a high-pressure pan, treatment with acid, treatment with enzyme, and the like, and treatment can be performed simultaneously with or before impregnation with the thickener-containing solution. In particular, softening of ingredients by enzyme treatment is effective. For these enzymes, for example, cellulase can be used for vegetables and protease can be used for meat. These enzymes vary depending on the type of ingredients and are not particularly limited.

The pressure reduction treatment for impregnation is preferably 500 Pa to 20,000 Pa, particularly 500 Pa to 4,000 Pa. When the pressure exceeds this, the thickener-containing solution is not impregnated, and when the pressure is increased, the material structure itself is collapsed.
For the decompression treatment, it is preferable to use a container / apparatus that can be decompressed by a vacuum pump, a decompression pump, an aspirator or the like, such as a vacuum kneader or a rotary vacuum tank.

In addition, trehalose is added to the solution containing the thickener to be impregnated, and the trehalose is infiltrated into the tissue surface of the ingredients and inside the tissue in the same way as the thickener, thereby suppressing decomposition of nutrients, functional ingredients, and other components. It is preferable because it can assist the inhibition of starch aging and the effect of inhibiting the change in taste, smell and color. Although the addition amount of trehalose is not particularly limited, it is preferably added so as to contain 0.1% to 20% with respect to the thickener-containing solution. Trehalose has a very high water retention capacity while being a low molecular weight carbohydrate consisting of disaccharides. Therefore, it easily infiltrates into the ingredients, and also retains moisture in the ingredients to promote the impregnation of the thickener into the ingredients. Furthermore, after being impregnated with the thickener, it interacts with the thickener and has an action of suppressing leakage of the thickener from the ingredients. In addition, trehalose has the action of maintaining the high-order structure of ingredients built from proteins, lipids, and sugars, so it maintains the ingredients in their natural state along with the impregnated thickener and includes color tone. It has a role to bring out deliciousness visually and sensuously. Therefore, it is preferable to add trehalose according to the characteristics of the ingredients.
In particular, if the ingredient is frozen, it is useful because it can suppress changes in the shape of the ingredient when thawed and can suppress leakage of water from the ingredient. Ingredients prepared containing trehalose are more effective in preventing water separation by thickeners than ingredients prepared without containing trehalose. Therefore, it is more preferable to add trehalose because it has a high effect on the property preservation effect during product storage, particularly during frozen storage or storage at room temperature.

    In addition, in the thickener-containing solution to be impregnated, carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, dietary fiber, vitamins, minerals, or degradation products thereof as nutritional components, polyphenols, carotenoids, sulfur-containing compounds as functional components (phytochemicals), Dissolve or disperse necessary ingredients such as terpenes, β-glucans, and other food additives, medicinal ingredients and medical drugs, such as seasonings that exhibit sweetness, salty taste, bitterness, sourness, pungent taste as taste ingredients, These additive components can be introduced into the surface of the ingredient tissue and inside the ingredient, and a new medical food can be prepared.

    The material impregnated with the thickener as described above can be filled in a pouch or cup as necessary to be sterilized by heating. Since starch thickens or gels when heated, heat sterilization and thickening / gelation are performed simultaneously.

    After freezing or thawing raw or heat-treated ingredients, or in a tissue that has not been frozen, infiltrate a solution containing a thickener under reduced pressure to increase the viscosity of the ingredients surface and ingredients. By gelling, the shape of the ingredient is maintained, it is soft and smooth, and it has the original taste, color and odor of the ingredient, while water is released from the ingredient, the outflow of nutrients and other ingredients, and the solid matter in the oral cavity It is possible to provide foods with reduced disintegration and dispersion for those with difficulty in chewing and swallowing seen in the elderly and the like. The product of the present invention is a softened food that has a soft and smooth texture and maintains the shape of ingredients, so it has an appetite, is delicious, and does not easily cause aspiration during swallowing. It can contribute to the improvement of QOL of those with difficulty in chewing / swallowing.

    Hereinafter, the present invention will be specifically described with reference to examples and comparative examples, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and the type, concentration, treatment time, etc. of the thickener are adjusted as appropriate according to the ingredients. However, it is possible to prepare a material having physical properties adapted to the state of a person with difficulty in chewing / swallowing.

    The carrot was cut into 1 cm thick slices, peeled, and then heated in boiling water for 10 minutes to freeze. Next, the sample was immersed in a 1% sodium alginate (Kimika) solution containing 1.2% hemicellulase (“Amano”; Amano Enzyme) and thawed at 50 ° C., and then alginate for 10 minutes under a reduced pressure of 2,000 Pa. Impregnated with sodium solution. Thereafter, the impregnated carrot was added to a 1% calcium lactate solution to form a jelly, and further heated at 50 ° C. for 1 hour to soften the carrot with an enzyme. Subsequently, the enzyme was inactivated by heat treatment with a steamer for 10 minutes. The softened carrot thus obtained showed a smooth shape without losing its shape, and the thickener-containing solution gelled from the carrot surface was not easily peeled off, and water separation did not occur. Furthermore, the color and flavor were similar to the original carrot. When this ingredient was eaten, it was so soft that it could be crushed by the tongue, had a feeling of being gathered in the oral cavity, and had a viscosity that was easy to swallow.

[Comparative Example 1]
Instead of the 1% sodium alginate solution containing 1.2% hemicellulase described in Example 1, it was immersed only in the 1.2% hemicellulase “Amano” solution not containing sodium alginate. Except for this, the carrot was softened by the enzyme in the same manner as in Example 1. The obtained softened carrot was deformed and water separation occurred. When the prepared ingredients were eaten, they were scattered within the oral cavity and had no physical feeling, and had physical properties that were easily removed during swallowing.

[Comparative Example 2]
Softened carrots were obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the solution was not impregnated for 10 minutes under reduced pressure as described in Example 1. The obtained carrot ingredients were easily peeled off from the thickened agent-containing solution that had been jellied from the surface, and water separation occurred from the portion where the thickener-containing solution was peeled off. When the prepared ingredients were eaten, they were scattered within the oral cavity and had no physical feeling, and had physical properties that were easily removed during swallowing.

[Comparative Example 3]
Softened carrots were obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that agar (Ina Food Industry Co., Ltd.) was used instead of sodium alginate described in Example 1. In the carrot ingredients obtained, the ingredients and jelly were easily peeled off and separated, and water separation occurred. In addition, when eating, the texture was seen, and the jelly was brittle and easily disintegrated in the oral cavity.
In addition, the carrot ingredients obtained were not jelly-like, and the surface jelly was easily peeled off and separated. This ingredient had no jelly feeling when eaten, and the jelly flowed out of the ingredients. For these reasons, the ingredients were scattered and the physical properties were easily removed during swallowing.

    The flounder whites were frozen after heat treatment. Next, the sample was immersed in a 1% sodium alginate (Kimika) solution containing 0.1% papain (W-40: Amano Enzyme), thawed at 60 ° C., and further sodium alginate for 5 minutes under a reduced pressure of 4,000 Pa. The solution was impregnated. Thereafter, a 1% calcium lactate solution was added to the impregnated flatfish white to make a jelly, and further heated at 60 ° C. for 1 hour to soften the flat white with enzymes. Further, the enzyme was inactivated by heat treatment for 10 minutes in a steamer. The softened white shellfish obtained in this way showed a smooth shape without losing its shape, the thickener-containing solution was difficult to peel off from its surface, and water separation did not occur. In addition, the color and flavor were similar to the original flatfish white. When this ingredient was eaten, it was so soft that it could be crushed by the tongue, had a feeling of being gathered in the oral cavity, and had a viscosity that was easy to swallow.

[Comparative Example 4]
In the same manner as in Example 2 except that the 1% sodium alginate solution containing 0.1% papain described in Example 2 was replaced by a 0.1% papain (W-40) solution, softening of the white shellfish by the enzyme was performed. went. The resulting flatfish white meat was deformed and water separation occurred. This ingredient had physical properties that were easy to peel off when swallowed, without looseness in the oral cavity when eaten.

    The lotus root was cut into 1 cm thick pieces, peeled, and then heated in boiling water for 10 minutes to freeze. Next, the sample was immersed in a 5% sweet potato starch suspension containing 1.2% hemicellulase (“Amano”: Amano Enzyme Co., Ltd.), thawed at 50 ° C., and impregnated with the solution for 5 minutes under a reduced pressure of 500 Pa. . Thereafter, the impregnated lotus root was heated at 50 ° C. for 1 hour to soften the lotus root with an enzyme. Next, the enzyme-treated lotus root was heat-treated in a steamer for 10 minutes to inactivate the enzyme and jelly. The softened lotus root thus obtained showed a smooth shape without losing its shape, the jelly-like thickener-containing solution was hardly peeled off from the surface, and water separation did not occur. Furthermore, the color tone and flavor were similar to the original lotus root. When this ingredient was eaten, it was so soft that it could be crushed by the gums, had a feeling of being gathered in the oral cavity, and had a viscosity that was easy to swallow.

Further, the softened lotus root so obtained was packed in a plastic bag, frozen at -18 ° C., thawed immediately after freezing and stored after 1 month of freezing, and the water separation rate and properties were observed. The water separation rate was measured as follows. First, about 10 g of frozen softened lotus root was accurately weighed and naturally thawed on a 50 mesh sieve for about 1 hour, and the amount of water flowing out of the sieve was measured. And the ratio of the water weight which flowed out after thawing | decompression with respect to a sample weight was made into the water separation rate.
As a result, softened lotus thawed immediately after freezing had a water separation rate of 8%, and almost no water separation was observed. The appearance and texture / flavor after thawing were almost unchanged. In the softened lotus root thawed after one month of freezing, the water separation rate was 16%, an increase in water separation was observed, the appearance after thawing was deformed, and the texture and flavor were deteriorated.

    5% sweet potato starch suspension containing 1.2% hemicellulase described in Example 3 and 5% sweet potato starch suspension containing 5% trehalose (Hayashibara Shoji Co., Ltd.) were used in the same manner as in Example 3. The lotus root was softened with an enzyme. The softened lotus root thus obtained showed a smooth shape without losing its shape, the jelly-like thickener-containing solution was hardly peeled off from the surface, and water separation did not occur. Furthermore, the color tone and flavor were similar to the original lotus root. When this ingredient was eaten, it was so soft that it could be crushed by the gums, had a feeling of being gathered in the oral cavity, and had a viscosity that was easy to swallow.

Furthermore, the softened lotus root thus obtained is packaged in a plastic bag and frozen at -18 ° C., and then thawed immediately after freezing and after storage for 1 month after freezing in the same manner as in Example 3. Observed.
As a result, the softened lotus thawed immediately after freezing had a water separation rate of 5%, and almost no water separation was observed. The appearance and texture / flavor after thawing were almost unchanged. In addition, the softened lotus root thawed after one month of freezing had a water separation rate of 7% and almost no water separation was observed. The appearance and texture / flavor after thawing were almost unchanged.
From this result, the softened lotus root prepared containing trehalose can enhance the water separation preventing effect of the thickener more than the softened lotus root prepared without containing trehalose produced in Example 3, and during product storage, In particular, it was found that the property preservation effect at the time of frozen storage is extremely high.

[Comparative Example 5]
Except that the 5% sweet potato starch suspension containing 1.2% hemicellulase described in Example 4 was replaced with only a 1% hemicellulase “Amano” solution, the same procedure as in Example 4 was carried out. Softening was performed. The resulting lotus root material was deformed and water separation occurred. When this ingredient was eaten, it was scattered within the oral cavity and had no physical feeling, and had physical properties that were easily removed during swallowing.

    The radish was cut into 1 cm thick slices and peeled, and then cooked for 15 minutes using a pressure cooker. Subsequently, it was immersed in a 1% sodium alginate solution (Kimika Corp.) and impregnated with the sodium alginate solution under a reduced pressure of 2,000 Pa for 10 minutes. Thereafter, a 1% calcium lactate solution was added to the impregnated Japanese radish to form a jelly. The softened radish thus obtained showed a smooth shape without losing its shape, the jelly-formed thickener-containing solution was difficult to peel off from the surface, and water separation did not occur. Furthermore, the color and flavor were similar to the original radish. When this ingredient was eaten, it was so soft that it could be crushed by the gums, had a feeling of being gathered in the oral cavity, and had a viscosity that was easy to swallow.

Furthermore, the softened radish thus obtained was vacuum-packed and sterilized at 90 ° C. or higher for 10 minutes. And it preserve | saved for one month at 25 degreeC, and carried out comparative observation of the water separation rate and the property like Example 3. FIG.
As a result, the soft radish thawed immediately after production had a water separation rate of 10%, and almost no water separation was observed. Moreover, the external appearance did not lose shape and was a smooth shape. The soft radish after one month of storage had a water separation rate of 17% and water separation was observed, and the appearance was slightly deformed. Moreover, it was a slightly watery and rough shape.

    Using 1% sodium alginate (Kimika Co., Ltd.) solution containing 5% trehalose (Hayashibara Corporation) in addition to the 1% sodium alginate (Kimika Co., Ltd.) solution described in Example 5 The radish jelly was made in the same manner as in Example 5. The softened radish thus obtained showed a smooth shape without losing its shape, the jelly-formed thickener-containing solution was difficult to peel off from the surface, and water separation did not occur. Furthermore, the color and flavor were similar to the original radish. When this ingredient was eaten, it was so soft that it could be crushed by the gums, had a feeling of being gathered in the oral cavity, and had a viscosity that was easy to swallow.

Furthermore, the soft radish thus obtained was stored at 25 ° C. for 1 month in the same manner as in Example 5, and the water separation rate and properties were compared and observed. As a result, the soft radish thawed immediately after production had a water separation rate of 7%, and almost no water separation was observed. Moreover, the external appearance did not lose shape and was a smooth shape. Moreover, the soft radish after one month of storage also had a water separation rate of 9%, and the appearance was smooth and free from shape loss.

From this result, the softened radish prepared containing trehalose can enhance the water-release prevention effect of the thickener more than the softened radish prepared without containing trehalose produced in Example 5, and can be stored at room temperature. It was found that it has an effect on the property preservation effect of time.

[Comparative Example 6]
Without passing through the step of impregnating the solution for 10 minutes under a reduced pressure of 2,000 Pa described in Example 6, the same operation as in Example 6 was performed to prepare a jelly radish tool material. The obtained radish tool material was easily deformed, and the thickener-containing solution jelly was easily peeled off from the surface, and water separation occurred from the surface. When the prepared ingredients were eaten, they were scattered within the oral cavity and had no physical feeling, and had physical properties that were easily removed during swallowing.

    Cut radish into 1cm thick slices and peel them into 5% sweet potato starch suspension containing 1.2% hemicellulase (Amano: Amano Enzyme) and 5% trehalose (Hayashibara Shoji) Soaked and impregnated with liquid for 5 minutes under reduced pressure of 500 Pa. Next, the radish was softened with an enzyme by heating at 50 ° C. for 1 hour. Furthermore, it was cooked for 15 minutes in boiling water. The softened radish material obtained in this way showed a smooth shape without losing its shape, the jelly thickener-containing solution hardly peeled off from the surface, and water separation did not occur. Furthermore, the color and flavor were similar to the original radish. When this ingredient was eaten, it was so soft that it could be crushed by the tongue, had a feeling of being gathered in the oral cavity, and had a viscosity that was easy to swallow.

Claims (6)

    One or more thickener-containing solutions selected from alginate, pectin, xanthan gum, guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan, glucomannan, curdlan, and starch penetrate into the tissue surface of the ingredient and the inside of the ingredient. A softened food for those with difficulty in chewing / swallowing, whose surface and the inside of the ingredients are thickened or gelled, maintaining the shape of the ingredients.     The softened food product for persons with difficulty in chewing / swallowing that maintains the shape of the ingredient according to claim 1, wherein the thickener-containing solution further contains trehalose.     The softened food for mastication and swallowing difficult persons having the shape of the ingredient according to claim 2, containing trehalose in an amount of 0.1% to 20%.     The thickening agent-containing solution contains any one or more of a nutritional component, a seasoning, and a medicinal component, and the softened food for a chewing / swallowing person who maintains the shape of the ingredient according to any one of claims 1 to 3 .     A solution containing one or more thickeners selected from alginate, pectin, xanthan gum, guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan, glucomannan, curdlan, and starch is applied to the tissue surface and the inside of the tissue under reduced pressure. A method for producing a softened food product for persons with difficulty in chewing / swallowing that maintains the shape of the ingredients by infiltrating and thickening or gelling the ingredient surface and the inside of the ingredient.     The method for producing a softened food product for persons with difficulty in chewing / swallowing while maintaining the shape of the ingredients according to claim 5, wherein the reduced pressure load is 500 Pa to 20,000 Pa.