WO2012056171A1

WO2012056171A1 - Method for controlling a rice pressure cooker and rice pressure cooker for implementing such a method

Info

Publication number: WO2012056171A1
Application number: PCT/FR2011/052501
Authority: WO
Inventors: Céline Sobole
Original assignee: Seb S.A.
Priority date: 2010-10-27
Filing date: 2011-10-26
Publication date: 2012-05-03
Also published as: FR2966714B1; CN103179884A; JP2013541386A; BR112013010426A2; CN103179884B; JP5889318B2; RU2013123488A; FR2966714A1; KR101856803B1; KR20130129375A

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for controlling a rice pressure cooker comprising a housing (10) closed by a cover (12), said housing (10) being provided with heating means (17, 18, 19), a controlled purge valve (20) and a temperature sensor (15), said method being characterised in that it comprises: a steeping step during which the heating means (17, 18, 19) are controlled so as to keep the container (11) at a temperature of between 35°C and 40°C for a determined period of about 2 hours; a rice germination step; a heating step during which the heating means (17, 18, 19) are controlled so as to obtain a determined nominal temperature of between 100°C and 110°C inside the container (11); and a cooking step that starts as soon as the nominal temperature is reached and during which the heating means (17, 18, 19) are controlled so as to keep the container (11) at the nominal temperature for a determined period of between 20 minutes and 40 minutes, for example 35 minutes.

Description

PROCESS FOR CONTROLLING A PRESSED RICE COOKER AND COOKER THEREFOR

The present invention relates to a method of controlling a pressurized rice cooker and a rice cooker for carrying out such a method. The process according to the invention is particularly suitable for cooking brown rice (or whole rice) to increase the content of gamma-amino-butyric acid (GABA).

GABA is a neurotransmitter of brain cells that plays a role in preventing certain diseases and stimulating the production of growth hormone. On the other hand, it is known per se that sprouted or partially sprouted brown rice contains significant levels of GABA.

The germination of brown rice is known per se. It consists for example of soaking the brown rice in water until the appearance of the rice germ. For example, in order to germinate the brown rice, it is necessary to soak the rice in room temperature water for 16 to 24 hours, then remove the water and leave the rice wet in a colander away from the light. , rinsing it with water from time to time and this for 24 hours.

Document KR20050091802 describes an example of a method of germinating and cooking brown rice sprouted in a pressurized rice cooker. The method consists of a step of soaking rice at a set temperature around 40 ° C. The soaking step is followed by a cooking step comprising several successive temperature rises.

Also known from JP 2002 335885 is a specific device for dipping rice to cause germination.

The object of the invention is to provide a method for controlling a single pressurized rice cooker to greatly reduce the germination time of rice and thus allowing an increase in the amount of GABA present in the prepared rice. This object is achieved by a method of controlling a pressurized rice cooker comprising a housing closed by a lid, the housing being equipped with heating means, a controlled depressurization valve and a temperature sensor, the characterized in that it comprises: - a soaking step during which the heating means are controlled to maintain the vessel at a temperature between 35 ° C and 40 ° C for a period of time of about 2 hours; a stage of germination of the rice; a heating step during which the heating means are controlled to reach a specified set temperature between 100 ° C and 1 10 ° C inside the tank, a cooking step, starting as soon as the set temperature is reaching, during which the heating means are controlled to maintain the tank at the set temperature for a specified period of between 20 min and 40 min, for example 35 min.

According to other variants of the invention:

the depressurization valve is kept in the closed position during the heating step and the cooking step and, at the end of the cooking step, the depressurization valve is opened until the pressure difference between the inside and outside the housing is substantially zero.

- The set temperature of the baking step is between 101 and 108 ° C.

- An element of the heating means for heating the lid is activated at the end of the cooking step. the element of the heating means is activated for 1 to 6 minutes, preferably for 5 minutes.

the soaking temperature is between 35 and 40 ° C., in particular equal to 38 ° C.

- An element of the heating means for heating the lid is deactivated during the soaking phase.

- The heating step is triggered by a user action on the cooker. - The germination stage is carried out in the rice cooker and it emits every 3 or 4 hours, an audible and / or visual signal to the user.

- the cooker emits an audible and / or visual signal to the user to indicate that a manual action by the user is required.

the rice germination stage is carried out outside the rice cooker. The present invention also relates to a control device of a pressure rice cooker specially adapted for implementing the method according to the invention and a pressurized rice cooker comprising such a control device.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will appear in the description below of an embodiment given by way of non-limiting example and illustrated by the appended drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic sectional view of a pressurized rice cooker to implement the method according to the invention.

FIG. 2 represents the diagram of temperature and pressure as a function of time corresponding to a first step of an embodiment of the control method according to the invention.

FIG. 3 represents the diagram of temperature and pressure as a function of time corresponding to another stage of this embodiment.

An embodiment of pressure rice cooker adapted to implement the method according to the invention will now be described with reference to FIG.

This embodiment of pressure rice cooker 1 according to the invention comprises a main body 10 or housing comprising a housing in which is inserted an internal tank 1 1 for cooking the rice. The housing is equipped with a cover 12 mounted hinged on the housing 10 so that the upper part of the main body is opened or closed by the cover 12. A control device 13 ensuring the control operations of the rice cooker 1 team also the housing 10.

The rice cooker 1 also comprises the first sensor 15 for detecting the temperature in the tank, in particular the temperature of the lower part of the vessel 11. The first sensor 15 is for example mounted near the bottom of the tank. A second sensor 16 for detecting the temperature of the inner face of the cover 12 is mounted on the cover. The first and second sensors are connected to the control device 13.

The heating means of the rice cooker 1 comprise a so-called main heating element 17 providing a heating source so as to cause the cooking operation and the operation of keeping warm in the tank 1 1 of the rice cooker, an element 18 heating the upper edge of the vessel 1 1 and a member 19 heating the inner face of the lid 12.

The pressurized rice cooker 1 also comprises a depressurization valve 20, for example a solenoid valve, controlled by the control device 13. The depressurization valve 20 is mounted in a manner known per se on the lid 12.

In a manner known per se, the rice cooker 1 may comprise a safety valve 21 protecting the cooker against an excessive rise in the pressure inside the housing 10. The housing 10 and the lid are for example plastic.

The control device 13 is installed on the main body 10, for example on an inner side of the main body. The controller 13 is also connected to control buttons 22 allowing a user to program the cooker. Furthermore, the control device 13 is connected to the heating means 17, 18, 19 to activate or deactivate according to events defined by a cooking program chosen by the user. Some of these events involve temperature measurements made by one and / or the other of the sensors 15, 16.

According to an alternative embodiment, the main heating element 17 is induction type while the element 18 heating the upper edge of the vessel 1 1 and the element 19 heating the cover 12 are of the resistive type.

The cooker may also include a germination accessory 31 comprising a removable basket.

The cooker also comprises signaling means (not shown) for transmitting information to the user. These signaling means are for example sound and / or visual.

As seen previously, usually, to germinate the brown rice, it is necessary to soak the rice in water at room temperature for 16 hours, then remove the water and leave the wet rice in a strainer protected from the light, rinsing it with water from time to time and this for 24 hours.

The control method of the rice cooker according to the invention makes it possible to accelerate the germination by soaking of the rice grains in water at about 35 ° C. to 40 ° C. for a period of between 2 and 4 hours. This reduces the soaking time by 6 hours.

Thus, according to the invention, the rice, for example brown rice, is placed directly in the accessory and the accessory in the tank of the cooker with water. Soak the rice in the bowl of the cooker. Then after removing the water from the tank, the wet rice is left in the accessory in the dark for about 30 hours, especially 32 hours.

From time to time, we wash the rice under the tap then we replace the accessory and the rice in the device.

When the rice germs are visible to the eye, the rice is washed one last time with water and poured into the tank.

The water level is then adjusted and a germinated rice cooking step is started. Cooking is very fast since soaking has already softened the rice. In addition, cooking is in the vicinity of 100 ° C more precisely between 101 ° C and 108 ° C. At this temperature the nutrients that have multiplied during the seed germination phase are preserved and we obtain a gloss of rice. Such a method of preparation makes it possible to obtain a preparation containing up to 10 times more GABA than in brown rice cooked with the known cookers available on the market.

The Applicant has found that the amount of GABA in the rice depends both on the temperature and the duration of soaking. Thus, too much temperature decreases the amount of GABA in brown rice. In fact, an excessive temperature kills the grain and inhibits germination. Moreover, beyond a certain period of soaking rice, there is a risk of bacterial growth in rice.

A method of carrying out a method for preparing rice comprising a germination step up to the visibility with the naked eye of the seed and a cooking step is described below in detail, this method of execution implement a mode of execution of a control method of the cooker.

First, the rice is placed in the removable basket inside the tank and the rice is covered with water. Then, a step of soaking the rice is carried out. This step is represented in FIG. 2 giving the evolution of the temperature as a function of time. During this step, the depressurization valve may be in the open or closed position. Moreover, all or part of the heating means 17, 18, 19 are activated so as to maintain a temperature inside the vessel 1 1 between 35 ° C and 40 ° C. In other words, a control loop of the heating means 17, 18, 19 on the signal of the first temperature sensor 15 located in the bottom of the tank January 1 is implemented. The duration of the soaking step is about two hours. Indeed, the applicant found that beyond 2 hours of soaking no significant gain on the subsequent germination time was obtained. According to an alternative embodiment, the set temperature during the soaking step is 37 ° C ± 1 ° C. According to another embodiment, the heating element 19 placed in the lid is deactivated throughout the soaking step. At the end of the soaking step, the cooker emits a signal, for example an audible and / or visual signal to the user to indicate that a manual action must be performed.

Indeed, at the end of the soaking step, a new step is made constituting the actual germination step. It is necessary to remove the water from the tank and then leave the wet rice in the closed tank, that is to say away from light for a period of about 30 hours, for example 32 hours. Preferably, every 3 or 4 hours, the rice is rinsed with water. To do this, remove the removable basket from the tank, then it is placed in the tank after rinsing. Preferably, the cooker emits a signal, for example an audible and / or visual signal to the user to indicate that a manual rinsing action of the rice must be performed. According to another variant, the germination is carried out outside the rice cooker, for example in an accessory provided for this purpose. Thus, during the germination phase, the rice cooker remains available for other cooking. At the end of this step, the user launches, by a specific action, a heating step. The heating step consists of reaching a predetermined set temperature of between 100 ° C. and 110 ° C., preferably between 100 ° C. and 105 ° C., inside the vessel 11. To do this, the control device 13 activates all the heating means 17, 18, 19 of the rice cooker 1 as long as the signal of the second sensor 16 located in the lid 12 does not indicate the set temperature. This heating step can be carried out either with the depressurization valve 20 in the open position or with the depressurization valve 20 in the closed position. The evolution of the temperature and the pressure in the tank of the cooker during this heating step is represented on the graph of FIG. 3. This heating step lasts substantially 30 minutes. However, without departing from the scope of the invention, faster temperature rises, for example 10min, can be implemented.

As soon as the set temperature of the heating step is reached, a cooking step is carried out by the control device 13. This step consists of maintaining the set temperature of the heating step for a determined period of time between 20 and 40 min, for example 35 min. Thus, the firing step consists of a control loop of the heating means 17, 18, 19 on the signal of the second temperature sensor 16 of the lid 12. As soon as the cooking time has elapsed, the heating means 17, 18 , 19 are disabled. The depressurization valve 20 is in the open position for example 5 minutes before the end of the cooking step. The evolution of the temperature and the pressure in the tank of the cooker during this cooking step is represented on the graph of FIG.

Preferably, the element 19 of the heating means is activated for 1 to 6 min, preferably for 5 min at the end of the baking step. This activation is included in the cooking step.

The method according to the invention is very simple since the cooking step comprises only one phase after the rise in temperature. This also helps to preserve rice nutrients by minimizing the exposure time of rice at high temperatures. Indeed, the germination has softened the rice and cooking does not need to be long. Moreover, a soaking phase is no longer necessary.

The invention also relates to the control device 13 specially adapted to perform the method according to the invention. The control device according to the invention is connected to the heating means, to the sensors, to the depressurization valve and to the signaling means and comprises a memory for storing the different program sequences corresponding to the execution of the method according to the invention.

Moreover, the invention relates to a rice cooker equipped with such a control device. The invention also relates to a data storage medium readable by a computer on which is recorded a computer program comprising computer program code means for implementing the steps of the control method object of the invention. Finally, the invention relates to a computer program comprising computer program code means adapted to perform the steps of the control method object of the invention.

Claims

A method of controlling a pressurized rice cooker comprising a housing (10) closed by a lid (12), the housing (10) being provided with heating means (17, 18, 19), a valve (20) ) controlled depressurization and a temperature sensor (15), the method being characterized in that it comprises:

- A soaking step during which the heating means (17, 18, 19) are controlled to maintain the vessel (1 1) at a temperature between 35 ° C and 40 ° C for a fixed period of about 2 hours.

A method of controlling a pressurized rice cooker according to claim 1, characterized in that the method comprises:

a step of germinating the rice;

a heating step during which the heating means (17, 18, 19) are controlled to reach a determined set temperature of between 100 ° C. and 110 ° C. inside the tank (1 1),

- A cooking step, starting as soon as the set temperature is reached, during which the heating means (17, 18, 19) are controlled to maintain the tank (1 1) at the set temperature for a specified period of time between 20 min and 40 min, for example 35 min.

A method of controlling a pressurized rice cooker according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the depressurization valve (20) is kept in the closed position during the heating step and the cooking step and in that at the end of the cooking step, the depressurization valve (20) is open until the pressure difference between the inside and the outside of the housing (10) is substantially zero.

A method of controlling a pressurized rice cooker according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the set temperature of the cooking step is between 101 and 108 ° C.

5. A method of controlling a pressure rice cooker according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a member (19) of the heating means for heating the lid (12) is activated at the end of the step Cooking.

6. A method of controlling a pressure rice cooker according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the element (19) of the heating means is activated for 1 to 6 min, preferably for 5 min.

7. A method of controlling a pressurized rice cooker according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the soaking temperature is between 35 and 40 ° C, in particular equal to 38 ° C.

8. A method of controlling a pressure rice cooker according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a member (19) of the heating means for heating the lid (12) is deactivated during the soaking phase .

9. A method of controlling a pressurized rice cooker according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the heating step is triggered by an action of a user on the cooker.

10. A method of controlling a pressurized rice cooker according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the germination step is carried out in the rice cooker and it periodically emits, every 3 or 4 hours , an audible and / or visual signal to the user.

1 1. A method of controlling a pressurized rice cooker according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the cooker emits an audible and / or visual signal to the user to indicate that a manual action of the user is required.

12. A method of controlling a pressurized rice cooker according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the rice germination step is carried out outside the rice cooker.

13. Control device (13) for a pressure rice cooker specially adapted for carrying out the process according to one of the Claims 1 to 12.

Pressurized rice cooker comprising a control device according to claim 13.