NZ228642A - Moulded food product based on granular or chipped processed food - Google Patents

Description

£28642 Priority Date(s): Complete Specification Filed: Publication Date: ®f, P.O. Journal, No* ;No.: Date: ;NEW ZEALAND PATENTS ACT, 1953 ;COMPLETE SPECIFICATION "A PROCESS FOR MANUFACTURING MOLDED FOOD" ;11 We, KANEBO, LTD, a Japanese company, of 17-4, Sumida 5-chome, Sumida-ku, Tokyo 131, Japan hereby declare the invention for which I / we pray that a patent may be granted to me/us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following ;- 1 - //V ;(followed by page la) ;228642 ;SPECIFICATION ;Title of the Invention ;A process for manufacturing molded food ;Technical Field ;This invention relates to a process for manufacturing molded food which is formed In a shape like a thin and long plate or stick by adhering granular or chipped processed food such as wheat flakes. ;Prior Art ;Generally molded food molded with a binder such as corn syrup and the like in a shape of a rectangular paralellpiped by drying after steaming cereals such as millet has been so far familiar with as a confection or snack. ;As typical examples of this molded food, there are confections called Awaokoshi in Japanese (millet confection), a granola bar and the like. There has been molded food which is formed by drying to puff (120 °C , 30 min.) after molding under pressure by putting wheat flakes into a mold and then binding utilizing the puffing characteristics in wheat flakes. However, a product such as millet confection and a granola bar which is produced by adhering with a binder such as sugar or corn syrup as mentioned above causes a defect ;- 1<\- ;228642 ;that since it is hard and fragile to be weak agaanst an impact, when biting to eat, such a product crumbles parts around the bitten part to fall down. Furthermore, it causes a defect that taste of raw material itself does not remain because a large amount of a binder such as sugar or corn syrup is used to thereby add bad smell and sweet taste to the molded food. ;The molded food which is formed by drying to puff (120 *C , 30 min.) after molding under pressure by putting wheat flakes into a mold is binded by utilizing puffing characteristics in wheat flakes in drying to puff, and since it is not used a binder at all, bindability between flake particles is bad. It causes a big problem that the particles around the bitten part fall off to dirty floor and the like when biting to eat.

To resolve the above-mentioned defects, the inventors found out that pregelatinized cer ea 1 ( oc - s tarch) powder(a binder) becomes glutinous in the step of drying with heat, when granular or chipped processed food (hereinafter called " particles of processed food") is binded in a good conditon with following steps comprising adding water to particles of processed food to make them in a wet condition, sprinkling the wet particles of processed food with pregelatinized cereal powder containing alcohol added water (alcohol aqueous solution), putting the sprinkled particles of processed food 2 22SG'i2 into a mold and drying it in this state. The above-mentioned improvement has been filed under a Japanese patent application No. 61-261237? With this effect the taste of raw material can remain, and a binding condition of the particles of processed food each other is improved. Therefore, when eating, the circumstance is not smeared by falling off the particles around the bited part. Since prege 1 atianized cereal powder has no taste and smell, the taste of raw material itself remains. However, there is another problem that the obtained molded food has bad appearance and taste since it contains parts(spots) consisting of lumps(dama in Japanese) of pregelatinized cereal powder in the case that the molded food is actually mass-produced by applying this method. That is, when wet particles of processed food are sprinkled with pregelatinized cereal powder, said pregelatinized cereal powder treated with alcohol aqueous solution once adhered to the particles of processed food drops off from the particles of processed food with the progress of the mixing and the dropped pregelatinized cereal powder is binded each other to be in a lump-form. The lumps become a component of the composition. Therefore, the resolution of this problem is strongly desired.

Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a process for producing molded food wherein molded food of which the taste of raw material itself remains and the binded 228642 condition of the particles of processed food is ,good is produced without deteriorating the taste and appearance. According to the present invention, the molded food which is free from bad taste and bad appearance based on the lumps of pregelatinized cereal powder, and is made the best use of the taste of its raw material can be obtained.

Disclosure of the Invention To accomplish the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a process for producing molded food comprising steps of preparing pregelatinized cereal powder containing alcohol aqueous solution, making particles of processed food wet by adding water, sprinkling said wet particles of processed food with said pregelatinized cereal powder containing alcohol aqueous solution, molding said sprinkled particles of processed food by putting them into a mold and drying, wherein before said particles of processed food are made in a wet condition, saccharides are adhered in a powdery or solution form with said particles of processed food thereto .

That is, the inventors made a series of research in order to improve said process for producing molded food developed prior to the present invention. The object is to prevent pregelatinized cereal powder containing alcohol aqueous solution from parting from said particles of processed food 4 2286,42 and from becoming in a lump state by binding each other. As a result, the inventors found out that the pregelanized cereal powder does not part from the particles of processed food when saccharide is adhered in a powdery form or solution form to the particles of processed food before making the particles of processed food wet, and therefore, a phenomenon that the pregelatinized cereal powder each other becomes in a lump-form is not caused to give the molded food in a good condition and completed the present invention. By research of the inventor after that, it is also known clearly that almost the same binding effect is obtained in the case that powder of polymer material such as pullulan, agar-agar, dextrin, gummy matter, alginic acid, sodium alginic acid, carboxy me thy 1 - eel 1u1ose, caramel, gelatine, egg white, gluten and the like are used alone or blended instead of said pregelatinized cereal powder containing alcohol aqueous solution. In this case, when saccharide is adhered in a powdery or solution form to the particles of processed food before making them wet, separation of powder of polymer material from said particles of processed food and becoming in a lump state by binding said powder of polymer material each other are prevented to give a molded food in a good condition.

In the present invention, as a binder, pregelatinized cereal powder containing alcohol aqueous solution and powdery 228642 polymer material are used. As said pregelatinized, cereal powder, there are gelatinized materials of the followings, nonglutinous rice powder, glutinous rice powder, waxy corn starch, potato starch, wheat starch, corn starch and tapioca starch. These may be used alone or blended. As a powdery polymer material, there are poly-saccharaide such as pullulan, agar-agar, dextrin, gummy matter, alginic acid, sodium alginic acid, carboxy methyl-cellulose, caramel and the like and protein powder such as gelatine, egg white, gluten and the like. These may be also used alone or^blended.

The particle size of these binder is normally used at 10 mesh pass in the light of their bindability. These are used in the range of 5~20 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of particles of processed food in the light of a balance between their bindability and their taste. 85 vol I of ethyl alcohol is preferably used as alcohol aqueous solution contained in said pregelatinized cereal powder. In this case, the water content of alcohol aqueous solution influences to a bindability of pregelatianized cereal powder. The water content in the range of 2~40 vol % is preferable. As particles of processed food which are a main component of the molded food according to the present invention, there are corn flakes, wheat flakes, instant noodle chips, nuts, dried vegetables, dried processed vegetables, dried fruits, dried processed fruits, dried meat, dried processed meat, dried 228642 fishes, dried processed fishes and confections and the like. As said confections, there are candies, puffed confections such as popcorn, chewing gum, baked confections, bean confections, processed chocolate such as chocolate chips, and they are used alone or blended. In the present invention, a large amount of one kind selected from above-mentioned particles of processed food is used as a main component and a sntall amount of another kind as a sub-component is added and dispersed therein. As saccharide which is adhered to the particles of processed food before making them wet, there are sugar (white superior sugar, granulated sugar), powdered corn syrup, glucose, fructose, and maltose, and they are used alone or blended. These saccharides are normally used in a powdery form, but it may be used in a solution form.by adding water. From a view of preventing a binder of pregelatinized cereal powder from becoming in a lump state, sugar is preferably used as saccharide. But if a large amount of these saccharides is used, the taste of the particles of processed food themselves is deteriorated. Therefore, it is set in the range of 2 ~"40 parts by weight (in the case of liquid form saccharide such as corn syrup, it is set on the basis of solid part) per 100 parts by weight of particles of processed food.

In the present invention, the molded food is, for example, produced using above-mentioned materials as follows. 7 228642 At first, powdery sugar is added to the particles of processed food such as corn flakes, wheat flakes and the like and mixed to make it adhere enough thereto. On the other hand, alcohol aqueous solution such as ethyl alcohol is added to pregelatinized cereal powder such as kambaiko in Japanese (powder of gelatinized glutinous rice) and mixed to give pregelatinized cereal powder containing alcohol aqueous solution. Next the particles of processed food adhered with powdery sugar are mixed with pouring water to make in a wet condition. Thus the required state where said pregelatinized cereal powder is adhered to whole of the particles of processed food uniformly and it is hard for the particles to part is prepared. Then said pregelatinized cereal powder is added to the wet particles of processed food and mixed sufficiently to sprinkle the particles of processed food with said pregelatinized cereal powder. The reason why alcohol aqueous solution is contained into the pregelatinized cereal powder is because the kambaiko absorbs water rapidly to be in a glutinous state when only water is added to the kambaiko. The kambaiko does not bind in such a state. On the contrary, when alcohol aqueous solution is used, becoming in a glutinous state of the kambaiko rapidly is prevented by the action of alcohol and the binding action is given. To describe in detail, since water is contained in alcohol aqueous solution, when the alcohol aqueous solution is soaked into the kambaiko. 228642 alcohol and water are soaked into the kambaiko. As a^ result, the glutinous state of kambaiko is not caused by water contained in the alcohol aqueous solution while alcohol exists, but caused by water left after evaporating alcohol. Therefore, such kambaiko containing alcohol aqueous solution is mixed with said particles of processed food in a wet condition, the mixture is molded and then dried to thereby evaporate alcohol in alcohol aqueous solution and leave water in the kambaiko. Consequently the kambaiko becomes in a glutinous state, so that said particles of processed food are binded well. In this case, the glutinous state of kambaiko is not caused at the step of molding but caused at the step of drying. In the step, the kambaiko is mixed with said particles of processed food in a wet condition uniformly, and a binding action is given in the state. Therefore, a fine binding effect is obtained with a small amount of kambaiko.

Generally said molding is done by a molding machine. At this time, it is preferable that the molding is done by compression molding and said particles of processed food themselves are adhered closely with pregelatinized cereal powder containing alcohol aqueous solution. Drying after molding is done in a state that said particles of processed food are in a mold or they are taken out of a mold. In this case, drying by hot air is normally done, but when the particles of processed food which are melted and deformed by 9 228642 heat are used, ventilation drying or natural drying is applied.

In thus obtained molded food, the taste of its raw material remains since pregelatinized cereal powder without strange taste and smell is used as a binder. When eating, the particles of processed food are not crumbled since they are binded tightly each other by a binding action which said pregelatinized cereal powder provides. Furthermore, in manufacturing the above mentioned molded food, the operation of adhering particles of processed food with powdery sugar is conducted prior to making the particles of processed food in a wet condition. Said pregelatinized cereal powder which once adhered to the particles of processed food in sprinkling process does not part from the particles. Therefore a phenomenon the parted pregelatinized cereal powder is binded each other to be in a lump form with the progress of mixing with sprinkling does not occur. Therefore, the appearance and taste of the product does not deteriorate.

In the above manufacturing process, powdered pregelatinized cereals involved the alcohol aqueous solution is used as a binder. The powdered polymer material mentioned above may be used instead of this since the same effect is obtained. In this case, since the above powdered polymer material does not become in a glutinous state like powdered pregelatinized cereals, it does not require alcohol aqueous 1 0 228642 solution. Flakes and the like are used as the particles of processed food in the above process. But the use of instant noodle chips as the main material is effective. That is, in this case, the pregelatinized cereal powder as a binder fastly dissolves and noodle chips separate in a moment with mere pouring boiling water to the molded food. Thereby, the above noodle chips can be eaten in a condition that they are puffed arid softened with hot water similarly to ordinary instant noodle.

As mentioned above, in this invention^as a form of granular or chipped form of processed food, a line form like instant noodle chips is included. And pregelatinized cereal powder used as the binder includes not only the material which is obtained by pregelatinizing powdered cereals such as glutinous rice powder or nonglutinous rice powder but also special pregelatinized cereal powder prepared by adding to mixture of water and alcohol to a pregelatinized material and drying.

That is, since the water permeability of this special pregelatinized cereal powder is controlled by a treatment of the mixture of water and alcohol, rapid expanding by absorbing water does not occur at the time of adding water. Therefore, it is hard for this special pregelatinized cereal powder to bind each other and become in a lump form at the time of wet. It has good affinity to the particles of 228642 m processed food. Further, in the above manufacturing,process the molding process comprises filling the material to the mold and removing, but it may be conducted by a roller pressure method. In this case, the press roller of the machine used is a mold. And as to the method for drying, a freeze dry method, a microwave method and the like besides the hot air drying may be selected appropriately.

As mentioned above, when molded food is manufactured with the present invention, a phenomenon which gelatinized cereal powder having alcohol aqueous solution or powdered polymer material used as a binder binds each other in manufacturing process to become in a lump form and the lumps are contained in the molded food to form spots does not occur. Therefore, the molded food of which the appearance is good and the taste is not deteriorated by the lumps of the binder, pregelatinized cereal powder can be manufactured. The above pregelatinized cereal powder and powdered polymer material are almost tasteless and odorless, and further the amount of saccharide which is coated to the particles of processed food for preventing the binder from becoming in a lump form is small, therefore the taste of particles of processed food can remain.

Brief Description of the Drawing Fig. 1 is an explanative drawing shown a manufacturing 1 2 228642 condition of an example in the present invention; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the molded food which is manufactured in the above process.

Preferable Embodiments Next, the present invention is explained based on Examples.

CExample 1 ] 100 parts by weight (pbw) of wheat flakes, 10 pbw of dried corn, 5 pbw of dried wakame (seaweed)^and 10 pbw of dried carrot are mixed, and then to this mixture 10 pbw of the powdery sugar (white superior sugar) is added and mixed. Next, 10 pbw of water is added to this mixture and mixed. Otherwise, by adding 15 pbw of 85% ethyl alcohol solution to 30 pbw of kambaiko and mixing them, kambaiko containing the alcohol aqueous solution is prepared. Next this kambaiko is mixed with the above mixture (wet condition by adding the water), as shown in Fig. 1, the mixture (10) is filled in a molding machine (11), and is compression-molded. Next, this is dried by hot air in a mold (90°C, 15min.), and then is removed from the mold to manufacture a molded food shown in Fig. 2. This molded food has no lump of kambaiko and it looks well and the taste thereof is good. The taste obtained in the condition that the binder is dissolved and flakes are separated each other by adding the milk to the molded food is 1 3 228642 also good.

Example 2 pbw of dried small fish (sardine, flatfish and the like), 200 pbw of crisp, 50 pbw of almond, 1 pbw of vitamine powder (A, B, C, D etc.) and 10 pbw of dried wakame are mixed, and 30 pbw of powdered corn syrup is added and mixed. Next, 20 pbw of water is added to this mixture and mixed. Otherwise, kambaiko containing alcohol aqueous solution is prepared by adding 15 pbw of 85% ethyl alcohoj to 30 pbw of kambaiko. This kambaiko is added to the above mixture and well mixed, and then the mixture is filled into a mold and dried by hot air at 90°C (15 min.) in that state, and removed.

Thus the molded food which has the effect same as enrichment is manufactured. This molded food has good taste and is soft and pleasant to the tongue without any lumps of kambaiko.

Example 3 50 pbw of powdered granular sugar is added to 300 pbw of popcorn and mixed, further 30 pbw of water is added thereto and mixed. Otherwise, kambaiko containing water is prepared by adding 15 pbw of 85 vol % ethyl alcohol to 30 pbw of kambaiko. This kambaiko is added to the above mixture and mixed, and then the mixture is filled into the mold and dried by hot air at 90°C (15 min.) in that state, and removed from I 1 4 228642 the mold.

Thereby, the molded food which is binded popcorn with a binder, kambaiko is obtained. This molded food has no lump of kambaiko and the taste of popcorn used therein remains to make the molded food with a good taste. And as well as the molded food shown in Example 2, taste of the binder and roughness to the tongue by the binder are not felt at all.

If puffed rice or Chinese noodle chips added some taste instead of popcorn is used, the same molded food which is binded popcorn with the binder is obtained.

Comparison Adding powdered sugar to particles of the processed food prior to making them wet is not conducted. Except this, with the same process as in Example 1 the molded food is manufactured. In this food, some lumps of kambaiko are dotted, and white spots are found partially. It looks no good and the taste thereof is deteriorated by the lumps.

Example 4 300 pbw of crisp, 50 pbw of almond nuts, 20 pbw of peanuts are mixed and further 35 pbw of powdered sugar (white superior sugar) is mixed. Next, 50 pbw of water is added to this mixture and mixed well to make it wet. After this, the same process as in Example 1 are conducted and the same molded 1 5 - 228642 food is manufactured. In this molded food, no Jump of kambaiko is found, and the taste of almond remains enough and the taste is soft and pleasant to the tongue.

Claims (8)

1. A process for producing molded food comprising steps of; preparing pregelatinized cereal powder containing an alcohol aqueous solution; making granular or chipped processed food in a wet condition by adding water, sprinkling said wet processed food with said pregelatinized cereal powder containing said alcohol aqueous solution, molding said sprinkled granular or chipped processed food by putting them into a mold and drying, wherein at least one saccharide, is adhered in a powdery or solution form with said particles of processed food prior to making them in a wet condition.

2. The process for producing molded food according to Claim 1, wherein at least one kind of a powdery polymer material selected from a group comprising pullulan, agar-agar, dextrin, gummy matter, alginic acid, sodium alginic acid, carboxyl methyl-cellulose, caramel, egg white, gluten is substituted for said pregelatinized cereal powder containing an alcohol aqueous solution.

3. The process for producing a molded food according to Claim 1, wherein said granular or chipped processed food is at least one kind of granular or chipped processed food selected from a group comprising corn flalSHr^h ' ri kes, ( ) O o f ^ /, o ^ O O i instant noodle chips, nuts, dried vegetables, dried processed vegetables, dried fruits, dried processed fruits, dried meat, dried processed meat, dried fishes, dried processed fishes, and confections.

4. The process for producing molded food according to Claim 3, wherein the confection is at least one kind of confection selected from a group comprising candy, puffed confection, chewing gum, baked confection, bean confection and processed chocolate.

5. The process for producing molded food according to Claim 1, wherein the pregelatinized cereal powder is at least one kind of pregelatinized cereal powder selected from a group comprising gelatinized material of the following, glutinous rice powder, nonglutinous rice powder, waxy corn starch, potato starch, wheat starch, corn starch and tapioca starch.

6. The process for producing molded food according to Claim 1, wherein the drying in the drying step is done by a hot air drying process or a microwave drying process.

7. A process as claimed in claim 1 and substantially as herein described with reference to any embodiment disclosed in the examples or the drawings.

8. A molded food prepared by the process of any one of the preceding claims. —