JP2919862B2 - How to make cut apples - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a method for producing cut apples, and more particularly, to a method of producing raw apples in a "raw" state for a long period of time without sterilizing or candied. The present invention relates to a method for producing a storable cut apple product.

[Conventional technology]

Conventionally, cut apples have been sold after being wrapped in a wrap film. In addition, there is known a method of producing cut apple products by cutting apples and then sterilizing in boiled or candied apples.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

In the case of a conventional ring after cutting, which is simply wrapped with a wrap film, the freshness of the apple after cutting is remarkably reduced, and the edible period is as short as one or two days even when stored in a refrigerator. Was.

In addition, browning caused by enzymes in apple cells and oxygen in the air was also a major problem. Further, in the method in which the apple after cutting is boiled or candied, the preservability is prolonged, but there is a problem that the original fresh feeling and texture of the apple are lost.

Therefore, the present inventors have developed a new cut apple product that has good preservability and also has the original freshness and texture of apple, in order to enhance the image of the cut apple product and also to increase the consumption. Has been recognized as an important issue in the industry, and as a result of intensive research, the present invention has been completed.

[Means for solving the problem]

The present invention is "raw" that can be stored for a long time in refrigeration, and has the freshness and texture of apples
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for producing a cut apple in a state of (1).

According to the present invention, an apple is washed, peeled off if necessary, cut, and the apple is treated with an aqueous solution of ascorbic acid and / or an aqueous solution of ascorbate. The apple after the treatment has an appropriate oxygen barrier property. The present invention relates to a method for producing cut apples, which is housed in a container and packaged with N ₂ gas replacement so as to have a residual oxygen concentration of 0.1% or less.

 Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail for each step.

Steps of washing, peeling, and cutting apples as necessary Since the surface of the apple skin has many germs attached thereto, it is sufficiently washed, peeled as necessary, and cut into an easy-to-eat shape. In particular, when acetic acid is used as a detergent, it is effective for sterilization of various bacteria. The concentration of acetic acid aqueous solution is 0.1 ~
5% by weight is desirable.

Step of treating the above-mentioned apple with an aqueous solution of ascorbic acid and / or an aqueous solution of ascorbate Due to the antibacterial action of the aqueous solution of ascorbic acid and / or the aqueous solution of ascorbate, the growth of microorganisms remaining on the apple surface is effectively suppressed.

In addition, the treatment with the aqueous solution of ascorbic acid and / or the aqueous solution of ascorbate also has a function of suppressing browning of the apple surface.

That is, since the aqueous solution of ascorbic acid and / or the aqueous solution of ascorbate has a reducing effect, it serves as a substrate for the oxidizing effect of polyphenol oxidase in apples, and thus effectively prevents the formation of browning substances in apples. It is possible to do.

In addition, lowering the pH of the apple surface with ascorbic acid also has the effect of reducing the activity of polynol oxidase. That is, the activity of polyphenol oxidase becomes maximum around pH 5 to 7, and when the pH is lowered to 3 or less, almost no residual activity is obtained.

Although the reason is not clear, it is conventionally known that various salts have an action of inhibiting the activity of polyphenol oxidase. Ascorbate is considered to have an activity of inhibiting the activity of polyphenol oxidase, as well as other salts, in addition to the reducing activity.

As the ascorbate, a sodium salt, a potassium salt, a magnesium salt, a calcium salt and the like can be used, and a sodium salt is particularly preferable.

When the number of bacteria attached to the apple surface is large, 70-98
Immersed in the ascorbic acid aqueous solution and / or ascorbate aqueous solution heated to about 1 ° C. for about 1 second to 120 seconds,
It is also possible to sterilize molds and yeasts that can grow in a high acid region or a low water activity region, and to inactivate polyphenol oxidase in apples.

The concentration of the aqueous solution of ascorbic acid and / or the aqueous solution of ascorbate is desirably 1 to 5% by weight. 1% by weight
If it is less than the above range, it is impossible to sufficiently prevent browning of the apple surface and lower the pH. If the content is more than 5% by weight, there is a disadvantage that the original taste of apples is lost.

A step of packaging the ascorbic acid aqueous solution and / or the ascorbate aqueous solution-treated apple in a container having an appropriate oxygen barrier property so as to have a residual oxygen concentration of 0.1% or less by N ₂ gas replacement. A container having an appropriate oxygen barrier property is provided. N ₂ gas replacement packaging so that the residual oxygen concentration is 0.1% or less for use is
This is for suppressing the respiration of apples and for preventing quality deterioration due to oxidation during storage of apples after cutting, and cup trays and films of thermoplastic resin can be used. The following specifications can be used for the cup / tray and the film of the thermoplastic resin, but are not limited to the following as long as they have an appropriate oxygen barrier property.

(A) Cup / tray: polypropylene (PP) or polystyrene (PS) / saponified ethylene / vinyl acetate copolymer / P
P or PS PP or PS / vinylidene chloride / PP or PS, PP /
CN / PP, PE / CN / PE (b) Film: KON / CPP, KPET / CPP, KOP / CPP, PET /
ON / CPP, PET / ON / PE (K is polyvinylidene chloride coat, ON is oriented nylon, C is undrawn, PET is polyethylene terephthalate, OP is drawn polypropylene, PE is polyethylene) The oxygen permeability is desirably 0.1 to 10 cc / container · 24 hrs · atm. When the oxygen is completely cut off, the oxygen in the container is completely consumed by the respiration of the apple, and the apple starts anaerobic respiration and the quality deteriorates. If the oxygen permeability of the container is 0.1 to 10 cc / container / 24 hrs / atm, the amount of oxygen permeating into the container and the amount of oxygen consumed by apples are balanced, suppressing the respiration of apples, and Quality deterioration can be prevented.

The reason why the residual oxygen concentration is reduced to 0.1% or less by the N ₂ gas replacement is to suppress the respiration of apples promptly and prevent deterioration in quality due to oxidation, and when the residual oxygen concentration is high, it is possible to suppress the respiration of apples. No, it cannot be stored for a long time.

It is also possible to use a carbon dioxide absorbent for the purpose of removing carbon dioxide generated by breathing apples.

The cut apple product obtained by the production method of the present invention has a long-term storage property in refrigeration, but refrigeration herein refers to a temperature range of 0 ° C to 10 ° C.

〔The invention's effect〕

Microorganisms are hardly found in the cut apple product produced by the method of the present invention, and the cut apple product has excellent preservability.

Moreover, even after long-term storage in refrigeration, the "fresh" state of the apple with its freshness and texture is maintained, and its commercial value is extremely high. Further, the method of manufacturing the cut apple present invention is to use the ascorbic acid and N ₂ gas safety has been confirmed, as seen from food hygiene point of view is also a safe way, industrial utilization value Is expensive.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to Examples and Comparative Examples, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

The concentrations of the acetic acid aqueous solution, the ascorbic acid aqueous solution, and the sodium ascorbate aqueous solution are described in terms of% by weight.

〔Example〕

Example 1 An apple was washed with a 0.5% acetic acid aqueous solution and water, and then washed vertically.
Split and the wick was removed.

The cut apple is immersed in a 2% aqueous solution of ascorbic acid, the apple pH is set to 2.7, the width is 105 mm, the length is 180 mm,
Six trays made of PP with a depth of 35 mm were filled.

The apples filled in the tray are put into a deep drawing tray (oxygen permeability 1.0cc / tray / 24hr · atm) of CPP / CN / LDPE with appropriate barrier properties, width 115mm, length 190mm, depth 40mm,
Using PET / ON / CPP film as a lid material, and N ₂ gas exchange packaging.

Example 2 After washing an apple with a 0.5% acetic acid aqueous solution and water, the apple was
Split and the wick was removed.

The cut apples were immersed in a 2% aqueous sodium ascorbate solution, and the surface pH of the apples was adjusted to 2.9, and six apples were filled in a tray made of PP having a width of 105 mm, a length of 180 mm and a depth of 35 mm.

The apples filled in the tray are put into a deep drawing tray (oxygen permeability 1.0cc / tray / 24hr · atm) of CPP / CN / LDPE with appropriate barrier properties, width 115mm, length 190mm, depth 40mm,
Using PET / ON / CPP film as a lid material, and N ₂ gas exchange packaging.

Example 3 An apple was washed with a 0.5% acetic acid aqueous solution and water, and then washed vertically.
Split and the wick was removed.

The cut apples are immersed in a 1% ascorbic acid, 2% sodium ascorbate mixed aqueous solution, and the apple surface pH
Was set to 2.8, and six PP trays each having a width of 105 mm, a length of 180 mm, and a depth of 35 mm were filled.

The apples filled in the tray are put into a deep drawing tray (oxygen permeability 1.0cc / tray / 24hr · atm) of CPP / CN / LDPE with appropriate barrier properties, width 115mm, length 190mm, depth 40mm,
Using PET / ON / CPP film as a lid material, and N ₂ gas exchange packaging.

Example 4 After washing an apple with a 0.5% acetic acid aqueous solution and water, the apple was
Split and the wick was removed.

The cut apples are immersed in a 1% ascorbic acid, 2% sodium ascorbate mixed aqueous solution, and the apple surface pH
Was set to 2.8, and six trays made of PP having a width of 105 mm, a length of 180 mm, and a depth of 35 mm were filled.

Apples filled in trays are combined with a carbon dioxide absorbent (Ageless C manufactured by Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company) and have a proper barrier property. 115mm wide, 190mm long, 40mm deep deep drawn tray of CPP / CN / LDPE (oxygen permeability 1.0 cc / tray / 24 hr / atm) and packed with N ₂ gas replacement using PET / ON / CPP film as a cover material.

Comparative Examples 1 to 4 Comparative Examples 1 and 2 are examples in which the ascorbic acid treatment was omitted, and Comparative Examples 3 and 4 were examples in which the N ₂ gas replacement packaging was omitted. Is shown in Table 1.

Tests were performed on 10 packs of the cut apple products produced in Examples 1 to 4 and Comparative Examples 1 to 4 which were stored at 10 ° C for 10 days for swelling of packaging materials, generation of off-flavor, and sensory evaluation.

 Table 2 shows the results.

As is clear from Table 2, the cut apple product produced by the method of the present invention does not swell the packaging material even after long-term storage, and does not generate off-flavor due to microorganisms and the like.
It had an excellent texture.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing from the front page (72) Inventor Junichi Kuroki 1-1-1, Ichigaya-Kagacho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo Inside Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. 591-1 Aoken Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Yoshihiro Teramoto Hirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture Oji Fukuda Kakiya 106 Co., Ltd. (56) References JP-A-59-6834 (JP, A) 3-254635 (JP, A) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁶ , DB name) A23B ^7/ 00-9/34

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] An apple is washed, peeled off if necessary, cut, and the apple is treated with an aqueous solution of ascorbic acid and / or an aqueous solution of ascorbate. The apple after the treatment is 0.1 to 10 cc / container. A method for producing cut apples, wherein the apples are housed in a container having an oxygen permeability of 24 hrs · atm and are packed with N ₂ gas replacement so that the residual oxygen concentration is 0.1% or less. 2. The method for producing cut apples according to claim 1, wherein the concentration of the aqueous solution of ascorbic acid and / or the aqueous solution of ascorbate is 1 to 5% by weight. 3. The method for producing cut apples according to claim 1, wherein the N ₂ gas replacement packaging is performed by enclosing a carbon dioxide gas absorbent.