WO2020161172A1

WO2020161172A1 - Ovenable frozen crumb-coated snack

Info

Publication number: WO2020161172A1
Application number: PCT/EP2020/052829
Authority: WO
Inventors: Petrus Paulus Bartholomeus Philomena HOEKSTRA; Laura Henrietta Gerardina VAN DONKELAAR
Original assignee: Crisp Sensation Holding B.V.
Priority date: 2019-02-08
Filing date: 2020-02-05
Publication date: 2020-08-13

Abstract

The present invention relates to an ovenable frozen crumb-coated snack comprising: - a pasteurised or sterilised filling containing at least about 50 wt.% of edible ingredients selected from fish, meat, poultry, shellfish, shrimps, cheese, ragout, vegetables, fungi and combinations thereof; - a layer of uncooked batter surrounding the filling; - a layer of crumb particles deposited onto the surrounding batter layer, said crumb particles containing 0.01-10 wt.% of added colouring agent and having a colour corresponding to the following L, a and b values within the Hunter Lab colour space: - 48 ≤ L ≤ 85; - 5 ≤ a ≤ 25; - 8 ≤ b ≤ 40. This ovenable snack can be produced by an economic process that does not employ prefrying or pre-baking prior to freezing. The snack can be heated in an oven to produce a ready-to-eat snack that can safely be consumes and that has a taste, texture and appearance very similar to that of a snack that has been prepared by deep frying.

Description

OVEN ABLE FROZEN CRUMB-COATED SNACK

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an ovenable frozen crumb-coated snack comprising:

• a pasteurised or sterilised filling containing at least about 50 wt.% of edible ingredients selected from fish, meat, poultry, shellfish, shrimps, cheese, ragout, vegetables, fungi and combinations thereof;

• a layer of uncooked batter surrounding the filling;

• a layer of crumb particles deposited onto the surrounding batter layer, said crumb

particles containing 0.01-10 wt.% of added colouring agent and having a colour that is similar to the colour of deep fried crumb particles.

The ovenable snack according to the present invention can be heated in an oven to prepare a ready-to-eat snack that can safely be consumed and that has a taste, texture and appearance very similar to that of a snack that has been prepared by deep frying.

The invention further relates to a process of manufacturing an ovenable snack, said process comprising:

a) providing a portion of a pasteurised or sterilised filling composition containing at least about 50 wt.% of edible ingredients selected from fish, meat, poultry, shellfish, shrimps, cheese, ragout, vegetables, fungi and combinations thereof;

b) coating the portion of the filling composition with a layer of uncooked batter;

c) applying crumb particles onto the batter coated portion to produce a crumb-coated

portion, said crumb particles containing 0.01-10 wt.% of added colouring agent and having a colour that is similar to the colour of deep fried crumb particles;

d) freezing the crumb-coated portion;

wherein the crumb-coated portion is not fried or baked prior to the freezing.

The invention also provides a method of preparing a ready-to-eat snack, said method comprising heating the ovenable snack of the present invention in an oven.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Fried battered and breaded (crumb-coated) snacks with a filling of fish, seafood, poultry, red meat, vegetables, ragout, etc. are popular for their crispy texture and golden brown appearance. Such crumb-coated snacks generally comprise a food substrate to which a variety of combinations of coating materials is applied. The coating materials typically include predust, adhesion batters, and breading crumbs.

Industrially produced crumb-coated snacks that only need to be fried to produce a ready-to- eat snack are commercially available. These fryable snacks typically are prepared by coating a filling with a layer of batter; applying crumbs onto the batter coated filling; and freezing the crumb-coated portion. During frying, the filling and the batter become fully cooked and the snack develops crispy texture and golden brown appearance. The crispy texture of the fried snack is provided by the combination of batter and crumb. During frying, the starch in the batter gelatinizes and water is removed from both the batter and crumb particles. Together, these changes contribute to the formation of a crunchy outer layer that is characteristic of fried crumb-coated snacks.

However, if the aforementioned fryable snacks are heated in an oven instead of a deep fryer, the oven heated product lacks the desirable crispy texture and the coating does not develop an attractive, e.g. golden brown colour. This is because the heat transfer rate during baking is much lower than during deep frying. As a result, less water is removed from the crumb during baking than during frying, preventing the baked crumbs from forming a golden brown crunchy outer layer. A well-established way to at least partly overcome this problem is to subject the snack to a frying step before freezing it. Thus, the oven heating used to prepare the ready-to-eat snack merely serves to reheat the already fully cooked fried snack.

The crispy texture of fried crumb-coated snacks rapidly disappears after the fried product has been prepared, especially if the substrate (filling) has a high water content. This loss of crispiness is caused by the uptake of water by the crunchy outer layer. After frying, water migrates from the filling towards the crumb layer and is absorbed by the dry hard crumb particles. Water uptake by these crumb particles transforms these hard rigid particles into elastic, deformable particles. This effect also occurs, at a slower rate, in pre-fried crumb- coated snacks during frozen storage. For this reason special crumbs have been developed that are more water resistant than ordinary crumbs.

GB 2 180 136 describes a process for the production of a crumb coating by drying a layer of liquid batter on a heated surface in such a way that it forms a coherent sheet, removing the sheet from the heated surface, and milling the sheet. The example describes the preparation of an ovenable food product by coating a fish product with a batter followed by the application of the aforementioned crumb. US 4,068,009 describes a process for preparing a baked coated comestible with the taste, texture and appearance of a fried coated comestible comprising:

• coating a comestible with a batter;

• coating the batter-coated comestible with a bread crumb coating composition, said bread crumbs being uniformly browned, and having 1.5 to 40%, by weight of the bread crumbs, of an edible oil applied to the surface of the bread crumbs; and

• baking said comestible.

US 4,518,620 describes a process for preparing ovenable breaded foods comprising applying a fat emulsion batter to a core comestible, thereafter breading the batter coated comestible, and thereafter overcoating the breaded comestible with an aqueous solution of egg white. Example 1 describes such a process in which pre-toasted bread crumb was used.

WO 2012/101025 describes a method of producing a frozen, microwaveable, coated food product, said method comprising the steps of:

• providing a portion of a solid or solidified substrate;

• coating the portion with an aqueous pre-coating liquid to form a pre-coated portion;

• applying a coating of bonding crumb to the pre-coated portion to form a crumb coated portion;

• applying a batter to the crumb coated portion to form a batter coated portion;

• applying a coating of coating crumb to the batter coated portion to form a breaded

portion;

• frying the breaded portion; and

• freezing the fried coated portion.

EP-A 3 199 038 describes an ovenable food product comprising, from the centre outward:

• a filling or a substrate;

• a batter coating;

• a crumb coating consisting of a layer of crumb particles which are at least partially

covered with a coating layer that comprises a fat composition.

To obtain a similar colour without deep-frying, one or more colourants may be added to the crumb. Colourants that maybe used include caramel (powder), burnt sugar, paprika, curcuma, malt flour, and one or more combinations thereof. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The inventors have developed an economic process for the production of an ovenable frozen crumb-coated snack that does not employ a frying or baking step prior to freezing. The snack so produced can be heated in an oven to prepare a ready-to-eat snack having a taste, texture and appearance very similar to that of a snack that has been prepared by deep frying.

The ovenable frozen crumb-coated snack of the present invention can be manufactured by coating a pasteurized or sterilised filling with a batter, applying coloured crumbs having a colour similar to that of deep fried crumbs onto the batter coated filling; and freezing the crumb-coated product. Unlike most ovenable crumb-coated snacks of the prior art, the preparation of the ovenable frozen snack of the present invention does not comprise the step of frying or baking the crumb-coated product prior to freezing. Even though the frozen crumb- coated snack of the present invention has not been subjected to frying or baking before freezing, it can be heated in an oven to produce a ready-to-eat snack that is very similar to a fried snack in terms of taste, texture and appearance. In particular, the crumb-coated snack of the present invention can be heated in an oven to produce a snack having a crunchy outer coating and an attractive colour. Furthermore, despite the fact that the frozen snack has not been subjected to pre-frying or pre-baking, oven heating of the frozen snack yields a heated product that can safely be consumed since all ingredients, including ingredients contained in the core (filling) of the snack, have had sufficient heat exposure to eliminate pathogens.

Accordingly, the invention provides an ovenable frozen crumb-coated snack comprising:

• a layer of uncooked batter surrounding the filling;

particles containing 0.01-10 wt.% of added colouring agent and having a colour that is similar to the colour of deep fried crumb particles. The colour of the crumb particles can be described accurately by the following L, a and b values within the Hunter Lab colour space:

48 £ L £ 85;

5 £ a £ 25;

8 £ b £ 40,

The heat exposure of the present snack during oven heating is sufficient to cook the batter coating and to dry the crumb particles, thereby producing a crunchy outer crumb layer.

However, the heat exposure during oven heating does not produce the desirable colour change of the crumb that is observed during deep frying.

The crumb particles on the outside of the ovenable frozen snack of the present invention already have a fried-like colour, e.g. due to the presence of a suitable colouring agent. Thus, when the ovenable snack of the present invention is prepared for consumption in a hot oven, the crumb coating of the hot ready-to-eat snack has a crunchy texture and a fried-like colour.

The invention further provides a process of manufacturing an ovenable frozen crumb-coated snack, said process comprising:

b) coating the portion of filling composition with a layer of uncooked batter;

c) applying crumb particles onto the batter coated portion to produce a crumb-coated portion, said crumb particles containing 0.01-10 wt.% of added colouring agent and having a colour that is similar to the colour of deep fried crumb particles;

d) freezing the crumb-coated portion to a core temperature of less than -12 °C;

wherein the crumb-coated portion is not fried or baked prior to the freezing.

As explained above, the present manufacturing process offers the advantage that it is very simple in that it does not comprise the step of frying or baking of the crumb-coated portion prior to freezing.

Also provided by the invention is a method of preparing a ready-to-eat snack, said method comprising heating the ovenable snack of the present invention in an oven to a core temperature of at least 60°C. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

A first aspect of the present invention relates to an ovenable frozen crumb-coated snack comprising:

• a layer of uncooked batter surrounding the filling;

particles containing 0.01-10 wt.% of added colouring agent and having a colour corresponding to the following L, a and b values within the Hunter Lab colour space:

- 48 £ L £ 85;

5 £ a £ 25;

- 8 £ b £ 40;

the measurements of the L, a and b values being performed on the thawed snack at room temperature.

The term“uncooked batter” as used herein refers to a batter that has not been heated to a temperature of 50°C or more.

The term“oil” as used herein refers to lipids selected from triglycerides, diglycerides, monoglycerides, free fatty acids and phospholipids.

The term“glass transition temperature” as used herein refers to the glass transition temperature midpoint.

The Hunter Lab colour space expresses colour as three numerical values, L for the lightness and a and b for the green-red and blue-yellow colour components. The L, a and b values of the crumb particles can be determined using a Minolta Chroma Meter CR-410.

Measurements are performed on the thawed snack at room temperature.

Whenever reference is made herein to the particle size distribution of a particulate material, the particle size (or diameter) distribution is determined using a set of sieves having different mesh sizes.

The ovenable snack of the present invention preferably has a weight of 8 to 150 grams, more preferably of 10 to 130 grams and most preferably of 15 to 100 grams. Examples of ovenable snacks according to the present invention include chicken nuggets, cheese bites, fish fingers, croquettes and“bitterballen”.

The ovenable snack of the present invention preferably is regularly shaped in that the volume of the snack equals at least 50% of the volume of the smallest enclosing sphere or ellipsoid that fully encompasses the snack.

The ovenable snack preferably comprises 40-95 wt.% of filling, more preferably 42-92 wt.% of filling and most preferably 45-90 wt.% of filling.

According to a particularly preferred embodiment, the filling is a cooked filling that has been heated to a temperature of more than 70°C.

The benefits of the present invention are particularly appreciated in case the filling contains at least 30 wt.% water. More preferably, the filling contains 35-65 wt.% water. Most preferably, the filling has a water content of 40-60 wt.%.

Preferably, the filling contains at least about 60 wt.% and most preferably at least about 80 wt.% of edible ingredients selected from fish, meat, poultry, shellfish, shrimps, cheese, ragout, vegetables, fungi and combinations thereof.

The filling, especially if it is composed of chopped or comminuted pieces, is preferably impregnated with a stabiliser composition, for example by soaking, permeation or injection (for example vacuum pulse injection), prior to the forming into portions. Examples of suitable stabiliser compositions can be found in WO 97/03572.

The filling of the ovenable frozen snack preferably is a pasteurised or sterilised filling.

The uncooked batter that surrounds the filling preferably contains 20-80 wt.%, more preferably 22-60 wt.% and most preferably 25-55 wt.% of non-gelatinised starch, said percentages being calculated on a dry weight basis. The non-gelatinised starch in the uncooked batter can be provided in the form of isolated starch and/or starch-containing flour.

The water content of the uncooked batter preferably is in the range of 55-90 wt.%, more preferably of 58-87 wt.% and most preferably of 60-85 wt.%. According to a particularly preferred embodiment, the batter contains 0.5-10.0 wt.%, more preferably 1-7 wt.% of a thickening agent selected from guar gum, xanthan gum, instant (pregelatinised) starch, cellulose derivative and combinations thereof.

Preferably, the uncooked batter has not been heated to a temperature of 40°C or more, more preferably the uncooked batter has not been heated to a temperature of 30°C or more.

The crumb particles that are deposited onto the batter layer preferably contain at least 50 wt.% starch. More preferably, the crumb particles have a starch content of 55-85 wt.%, most preferably of 65-80 wt.%.

The flour content of the crumb particles preferably exceeds 80% by weight of dry matter, more preferably the flour content exceeds 90% by weight of dry matter.

Gluten content of the crumb particles preferably is in the range of 5-20 wt.%, more preferably in the range of 5-12 wt.% and most preferably in the range of 7-11 wt.%.

Preferably, the starch in the crumb particles is essentially completely gelatinized as demonstrated by the absence of birefringence that is associated with the presence of starch granules. Starch granules show birefringence or a typical“maltese cross” when viewed in polarised light. The property of birefringence is brought about because the starch molecules are radially oriented within the granule. When starch is heated in water, birefringence is lost.

The crumb particles employed in accordance with the present invention preferably have been obtained by a process that comprises extruding a mixture comprising flour and water, wherein the mixture of flour and water is heated to a temperature in excess of 90°C, more preferably in excess of 105°C during extrusion. The crumb particles are preferably obtained by milling the extrudate so obtained.

According to a particularly preferred embodiment, the crumb particles of the present invention consist of milled extrusion-baked dough. These extruded crumb particles preferably contain 0.1-6 wt.%, more preferably 0.2-4 wt.% and most preferably 0.25-3 wt.% of biopolymer selected from natural gums, modified gums, gelatin, pectin, alginate,

arabinogalactan, agar, carrageenan, furcellaran, xanthan and combinations thereof.

Preferably, the bipolymer is selected from natural gums and combinations thereof. Examples of natural gums that may suitably be employed include guar gum, xanthan gum, locust bean gum, gum Arabic, tragacanth, gum karaya, gum ghatti, xanthan gum and combinations thereof. Most preferably, the biopolymer is selected from guar gum, locust bean gum, xanthan gum and combinations thereof.

The crumb particles that are employed in accordance with the present invention have a colour similar to that of deep fried crumb particles. Crumb particles having such a colour can be prepared by preparing the crumb particles from a farinaceous dough containing added colouring agent. Alternatively, crumb particles having a colour similar to that of deep fried crumb particles can be prepared by frying or baking crumb until the Maillard reactions and caramelisation reactions occurring on the surface of the crumb particles have produced the desired colour change. Most preferably, the crumb particles of the present invention contain added colouring agent.

The crumb particles that are employed in accordance with the present invention preferably contain 0.02-6 wt.%, most preferably 0.05-3 wt.% of added colouring agent. Examples of colouring agents that may suitably be employed include caramel, annatto, curcumin, carotene, capsanthin, capsorubin, carmine, lycopene, anthocyanin and combinations thereof. According to a particularly preferred embodiment, the colouring agent comprises caramel.

According to a particularly preferred embodiment, the crumb particles contain 0.1-10 wt.%, more preferably 0.2-5 wt.% of caramel.

According to further particularly preferred embodiment, the crumb particles contain 0.01-0.2 wt.%, more preferably 0.01-0.1 wt.% of annatto.

Crumb particles containing added colouring agent are preferably prepared from a dough comprising the colouring agent. The colouring agent preferably is homogeneously distributed throughout the dough. The inside and outside of the crumb particles so obtained have essentially the same colour.

The crumb particles employed in accordance with the present invention preferably have a brownish colour. Preferably, the Hunter L-value is in the range of 50 to 80, most preferably in the range of 52 to 78. The Hunter a-value is preferably in the range of 6 to 24. The Hunter b- value is preferably in the range of 9 to 25.

The crumb particles preferably have a volume weighted average diameter of 0.5 to 3 mm, more preferably a volume weighted average diameter of 0.8 to 2.8 mm, and most preferably a volume weighted average diameter of 1.5 to 2.5 mm. According to another preferred embodiment, the layer of crumb particles is coated with oil. The application of an oil coating offers the advantage that after oven heating the ready-to-eat snack closely resembles a deep fried snack. Preferably, the oil contains at least 80 wt.% triglycerides.

In accordance with a particularly preferred embodiment, the frozen snack of the present invention is packaged in a packaging material that carries instructions to heat the food product in an oven, preferably at a temperature in the range of 160-220°C.

Another aspect of the present invention relates to a process of manufacturing an ovenable frozen crumb-coated snack, said process comprising:

b) coating the portion of filling composition with a layer of uncooked batter;

c) applying crumb particles onto the batter coated portion to produce a crumb-coated portion, said crumb particles containing 0.01-10 wt.% of added colouring agent and having a colour corresponding to the following L, a and b values within the Hunter Lab colour space:

- 48 £ L £ 85;

5 £ a £ 25;

- 8 £ b £ 40;

the measurements of the L, a and b values being performed on the thawed snack at room temperature; and

wherein the crumb-coated portion is not fried or baked prior to the freezing.

According to a particularly preferred embodiment, the manufacturing process produces an ovenable snack as described herein before.

The filling composition that is employed in the process preferably is a filling as described herein before. Likewise, also the uncooked batter and the crumb particles employed are an uncooked batter and crumb particles as described herein before. Before coating the portion of filling composition with uncooked batter, the portion may suitably be coated with predust. The application of predust facilitates the adhesion of the batter onto the surface of meat, fish, poultry and vegetables.

According to a particularly preferred embodiment, the crumb particles employed in the present process have a water content of less than 8 wt.%, more preferably of less than 7 wt.% and most preferably of less than 6 wt.%. Typically, the crumb particles have a water content of at least 1 wt.%.

The crumb particles employed in the present process preferably have a glass transition temperature of more than 60°C, more preferably of more than 80°C, even more preferably of more than 100°C and most preferably of more than 110°C.

The glass transition temperature of the crumb particles can be determined by modulated DSC using the following procedure:

- A ground sample of 20-30 mg is added to a stainless steel DSC pan. The DSC pan is inserted in the DSC equipment.

- The sample is equilibrated at 20°C, and then heated at a rate of 2°C/min to a maximum temperature of 160°C.

- The sample is cooled back to 20°C, and then heated again at a rate of 2°C/min to a

maximum temperature of 160°C.

The heat flow is measured during the heating cycle, glass transition is determined in the second heating cycle.

The glass transition temperature of the crumb particles is affected by moisture content. The higher the moisture content, the lower the glass transition temperature. The inventors have found that the glass transition temperature of crumb particles that have been prepared by extrusion is less affected by moisture content than ordinary crumb particles. Typically, the crumb particles of the present invention are characterised by a relationship between glass transition temperature and moisture content that meets the following conditions:

T_g ³ 80+ ((10-[H₂0]) X 13) and [H₂0] < 10

wherein:

T_g represents the glass transition temperature of the crumb particles in °C;

[H2O] represents the moisture content of the crumb particles in wt.%. The present process may comprise the application of multiple layers of crumb particles. For instance, following the coating with the batter, a layer of coarse crumb may be applied followed by application of another layer of fine crumb.

In the preparation of the snack preferably 100 parts by weight of filling composition are combined with 3 to 60 parts by weight of batter, and 3 to 60 parts by weight of crumb particles. More preferably, about 100 parts by weight of filling composition are combined with 5 to 45 parts by weight of batter, and 5 to 50 parts by weight of crumb particles.

According to another preferred embodiment, the crumb-coated portion is coated with oil prior to freezing. Preferably, the oil contains at least 80 wt.% triglycerides. The oil preferably has a melting point of less than 30°C. The amount of oil that is applied preferably is in the range of 10 to 50% by weight of the crumb particles, more preferably in the range of 15 to 35% by weight of the crumb particles.

In order to minimize unwanted water migration, the crumb-coated portion is introduced into a freezer within 5 minutes, preferably within 2 minutes after the crumb particles have been applied.

The crumb-coated portion is preferably packaged before or after the freezing. Most preferably, the crumb-coated portion is packaged after the freezing.

Yet another aspect of the invention relates to a method of preparing a ready-to-eat snack, said method comprising heating the ovenable snack according to the present invention in an oven to a core temperature of at least 60°C.

The invention is further illustrated by means of the following non-limiting examples.

EXAMPLES

An ovenable frozen crumb-coated snack according to the present invention was prepared as described below.

Preparation of a filling composition

A filling composition was prepared on the basis of the recipe that is shown in Table 1.

Table 1

The composition of the stabiliser ingredient is shown in Table 2

Table 2

A broccoli puree was prepared by mixing 20% of the broccoli florets with the stabiliser,

Methocel® MX, Novation® 1900 and water, using a bowl chopper, applying vacuum during mixing is required. The frozen cauliflower florets, the remaining broccoli florets, the spices and salt were mixed in a Paddle mixer. Next, the broccoli puree was introduced and the ingredients were mixed under vacuum to produce a homogeneous mixture.

Preparation of a batter

A batter dry mix was prepared on the basis of the recipe that is shown in Table 3. Table 3

The dry mix was prepared by mixing all the dry ingredients, followed by admixture of the oil. The batter was prepared by mixing 1 part by weight of dry mix with 2.5 parts by weight of water.

Preparation of extrusion-baked crumb

Water resistant crumb particles were prepared by feeding a flour slurry and a gelling composition into an extruder.

A dry flour mixture was prepared on the basis of the recipe that is shown in Table 4.

Table 4

A gelling composition was prepared on the basis of the recipe that is shown in Table 5.

Table 5

The gelling composition was prepared by dispersing the dry ingredients with a high shear mixer into the water and leaving the mixture stand for 15 hours. The dry flour mixture (150 kg per hour) was mixed with water (35 kg per hour) to form a slurry. The slurry was fed into a Clextral™ twin-screw extruder. The gelling composition was injected into the extruder barrel in an amount of 7.5% (13.88 kg per hour). The resultant extruded mixture was chopped into pieces and allowed to expand to form bubble-shaped pieces having a typical maximum dimension of 0.5 cm to 1.0 cm.

The extrudate was dried, and milled in a roller mill. The crumb so obtained was separated in a coarse fraction (1.5-2.5 mm), a fine fraction (0.8-1.5 mm) and a predust fraction (<0.8 mm) using a 1.5 mm and a 0.8 mm sieve.

Coating portions of filling composition with batter

The filling composition was fed into a multi-former to shape 20 grams of filling into a round disc. Next, a predust was applied (appr. 2% pick-up). The composition of the predust is shown in Table 6.

Table 6

The predusted filling portions were coated with the batter (appr. 14% pick-up) by using a GEA WetCoater™.

Breading of the batter coated portions

The batter coated portions were successively breaded with the coarse crumb (appr. 14% pick-up) and the fine crumb (appr. 2% pick-up). The crumbs were applied using a GEA CrumbMaster™.

Oil spraying

Within 30 seconds after the breading, the breaded portions were sprayed with rapeseed oil (appr. 5% pick-up) using a Saturn DiscMatic™ spraying system.

Freezing

Within less than 15 seconds after oil spraying, the crumb-coated snacks were introduced into a GEA Spiral freezer, for 40 minutes at -45°C. Packaging and storage:

Immediately after freezing the frozen snacks were packaged and stored at -18°C.

Example 2

After 10 weeks of frozen storage the frozen crumb-coated snacks were prepared for consumption in a Leventi combisteamer oven (10 minutes at 180°C). Before consumption the products were rested for 2 minutes.

The oven heated snacks were evaluated by an expert panel on crispiness and juiciness. The crispiness was scored on a scale of 1-10, wherein 1 is“not crispy at all”, 5 is“acceptable” and 10 is“very crispy”. The juiciness was scored on a scale of 1-10, wherein 1 is“not juicy”,

5 is“acceptable” and 10 is“very juicy”.

Both the crispiness and juiciness of the snack received a rating of“8”. The same ratings were given by the panel to commercially available ovenable frozen breaded snacks. Unlike the snacks of the present invention, these market products had been pre-fried before freezing.

Example 3

An oven heating test was carried out in which croquettes according to the present invention were compared with two commercially available frozen croquettes that are meant to be prepared in a deep fryer. The croquettes were prepared in a Leventi combisteamer oven (17 minutes, 190°C, 50% fan speed).

Figure 1a shows the different croquettes before oven heating. The Hunter Lab values of the croquette according to the invention are shown in Table 7.

Table 7

Figure 1b shows the same croquettes after oven heating. In both pictures, the snack according to the present invention is the dark coloured snack on the right.

After oven heating, the croquettes according to the invention had an appearance that is non- distinguishable from that of deep fried croquettes. The deep fryer croquettes, however, had a very unattractive pale colour and showed cracks through which the filling had leaked. Example 4

An ovenable frozen crumb-coated snack according to the present invention was prepared in the same way as described in Example 1 , except that this time a cheese filling composition was prepared on the basis of the recipe that is shown in Table 8.

Table 8

The filling composition was prepared by mixing together the cream cheese, mozzarella and water, followed by addition of the binder. Next the mixture was heated under stirring to 100°C for 11 minutes, followed by the addition of the spice mix, after which the mixture was allowed to cool down. The sterilised filling composition so prepared had a dry matter content of approximately 47 wt.%.

Claims

1. An ovenable frozen crumb-coated snack comprising:

• a pasteurised or sterilised filling containing at least about 50 wt.% of edible

ingredients selected from fish, meat, poultry, shellfish, shrimps, cheese, ragout, vegetables, fungi and combinations thereof;

• a layer of uncooked batter surrounding the filling;

• a layer of crumb particles deposited onto the surrounding batter layer, said crumb particles containing 0.01-10 wt.% of added colouring agent and having a colour corresponding to the following L, a and b values within the Hunter Lab colour space:

- 48 £ L £ 85;

5 £ a £ 25;

- 8 £ b £ 40;

2. Ovenable snack according to claim 1 , wherein the crumb particles contain 0.01-10 wt.% of added colouring agent.

3. Ovenable snack according to claim 2, wherein the colouring agent is selected from

caramel, annatto, curcumin, capsanthin, capsorubin, carmine, lycopene, anthocyanin and combinations thereof.

4. Ovenable snack according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the crumb particles contain 0.1-10 wt.% of caramel.

5. Ovenable snack according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the crumb particles contain at least 50 wt.% of starch.

6. Ovenable snack according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the crumb particles consist of milled extrusion-baked dough.

7. Ovenable snack according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the crumb particles have a volume weighted average diameter of 0.5 to 3 mm.

8. Ovenable snack according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the layer of crumb particles is coated with oil.

9. Ovenable snack according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the uncooked batter contains 20-80 wt.% of non-gelatinised starch, calculated on a dry weight basis.

10. Ovenable snack according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the snack has a weight of 8 to 150 grams.

11. Ovenable snack according to one or more of the preceding claims, comprising 40-95 wt.% of filling.

12. Ovenable snack according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the filling contains at least 30 wt.% water.

13. A process of manufacturing an ovenable frozen crumb-coated snack, said process

comprising:

b) coating the portion of filling composition with a layer of uncooked batter;

- 48 £ L £ 85;

5 £ a £ 25;

- 8 £ b £ 40;

wherein the crumb-coated portion is not fried or baked prior to the freezing.

14. Process according to claim 13, wherein 100 parts by weight of filling composition are combined with 3 to 60 parts by weight of batter, and 3 to 60 by weight of crumb particles.

15. A method of preparing a ready-to-eat snack, said method comprising heating the

ovenable snack according to one or more of claims 1-12 in an oven to a core temperature of at least 60°C.