JP7789376B2 - Container for thawing frozen sushi - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a container for packaging and selling frozen sushi so that it can be thawed while still lined up.

Various containers that allow frozen sushi to be thawed while still in a laid-out state have been developed, as shown in Patent Documents 1 to 4, etc.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1999-290206 Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-136975 Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-137493 WO1005/7532 publication

In developing this technology, the focus has traditionally been on ensuring that when thawing sushi in a microwave oven while still in the container, the rice is warmed appropriately while the toppings are not overheated unnecessarily. To achieve this, for example, containers have been designed to prevent the toppings from being exposed to the microwaves of the microwave oven. As described in the above-mentioned patent document, one such design involves covering the toppings with aluminum foil. However, there is a risk of fire inside the microwave oven due to discharge occurring at the edges of the aluminum foil. Therefore, while this type of container may be suitable for use in sushi restaurant kitchens, it is not suitable from a safety standpoint for use by the average consumer defrosting sushi at home. The present invention was made to solve this problem.

The following configurations are each means for solving the above problems.

<Configuration 1>
The container body and the lid are stacked together for use,
The container body and lid are molded plastic bodies that are heat-resistant and can withstand the heat that is applied when thawing in a microwave oven.
The container body has a container portion that accommodates a plurality of frozen sushi rice pieces arranged side by side so as to surround each piece of sushi rice, and a flange portion that aligns the container portions at regular intervals and connects and integrates their opening edges,
When the frozen ingredients are arranged in contact with the opening edges of the container parts provided in the flange parts and covering the opening edges,
The lid and the flange portion sandwich all ingredients between them to prevent the ingredients from moving, and the space between the lid and the container body is sealed.
The flange portion is provided with a protrusion that maintains the distance between the flange portion and the lid at a set value, and a recess that is deep enough to reach at least the bottom of the container portion.

<Configuration 2>
The flange portion is provided with a protrusion that maintains the distance between the flange portion and the lid at a set value, and a recess that is deep enough to reach at least the bottom of the container portion, both of which are press-molded into a continuous, integrated unit with the flange portion.
<Configuration 3>
The sushi thawing container according to structure 1 or 2 is characterized in that the bottom of the container portion for the rice is embossed by being integrally press-molded, giving it more flexibility than other portions.

Since the container body 12 and the lid 14 are made by press molding heat-resistant plastic, the thickness of the container part 12 surrounding the rice and the lid 14 can be adjusted by devising the molding shape, and optimized so that microwaves can easily penetrate.
The container parts 18 surround the rice sushi 22 one by one and are arranged below the flange parts 16, so that microwaves from below are uniformly irradiated onto the entire rice sushi 22.
The neta 24 is sandwiched between the lid 14 and the flange part 16 so as to cover the opening edge 20 of the container part 18 and is arranged so as to be prevented from moving, so that the microwave coming from below is weakened and it is more difficult to heat than the rice, and can be thawed at an appropriate temperature.
By providing a protrusion 26 that maintains the gap between the flange portion 16 and the lid 14 at a set value, the lid 14 can be supported so that it is in contact with the ingredients 24 while preventing the ingredients from being crushed, and the ingredients can be thawed at an appropriate temperature. Also, if the ingredients 24 are not thawed sufficiently, the temperature can be adjusted by pouring hot water directly on the lid 14.
By providing the flange portion 16 with a recess 28 deep enough to reach at least the bottom of the container portion 18, deformation of the container portion 18 due to external force applied to the flexible bottom of the container portion 18 can be suppressed.
Since the plastic is press-molded, embossing the bottom of the container portion 18 makes that portion thinner, making the bottom of the container portion more flexible than the rest of the container, which makes it easier to push the rice out of the container portion after thawing.

1(a) is a top view of the container body 12, (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of (a), and (c) is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A showing the state in which rice 22 and toppings 24 are contained. 2(a) is a top view of the lid 14, (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB of (a), and (c) is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB showing the state in which the container body 12 and the lid 14 are stacked. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the container body 12 as seen from above. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the container body 12 as seen from below. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the lid 14 as seen from above. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the lid 14 as seen from below.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below, with examples.

The frozen sushi thawing container of the present invention is sold with several frozen toppings 24 placed on top of frozen rice 22, arranged inside the container, allowing customers to thaw the sushi in the microwave without removing it from the container and eat it. It can also be used as a container for frozen storage, thawing it in the kitchen of a sushi restaurant and serving it to customers.

The container is made of heat-resistant plastic that can withstand the heat experienced during thawing in a microwave oven, and the container body 12 and lid 14 are press-molded into the shape shown in the figure.

The container body 12 has a container portion 18 that accommodates a number of frozen sushi rice balls 22, one at a time, enclosing each of the sushi rice balls 22 in its entirety, and a flange portion 16 that aligns the container portions 18 at regular intervals and connects their opening edges 20 together.

As shown in Figure 1, the container portion 18 is arranged so that it protrudes below the flange portion 16. When microwaves from a microwave oven are irradiated from below, the microwaves reach the entire rice 22 through the wall of the container portion 18. Therefore, the height of the container portion 18 is set so that part of the rice 22 does not protrude above the opening edge 20 of the flange portion 16.

The flange portion 16 has a hill-like bulge around the opening edge 20 that adjusts the height of the container portion 18. Because part of the flange portion 16 is press-molded, the wall thickness of the container portion 18 is significantly thinner than other parts, creating a structure that allows microwaves to penetrate easily.

Furthermore, while the flange portion 16 has high mechanical strength, the container portion 18 has relatively low mechanical strength, so recesses 28 are provided to prevent crushing. In addition, protrusions 26 that support the lid 14 are provided in various locations on the flange portion 16. Cylindrical or triangular prism shapes are suitable, as shown in Figures 1 and 2.

As shown in Figure 1(b), when the flange portion 16 is formed into a disk shape, the recess 28 supports the flange portion 16 from below at its center. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 1(c), the protrusion 26 and recess 28 maintain the distance between the container body 12 and the lid 14 and function to prevent deformation of the flexible portion of the bottom of the container portion 18. Because the protrusion 26 and recess 28 are lower in height than the container portion 18, the mechanical strength of the sidewall is greater than that of the container portion 18. The recess 28 reaches at least to the bottom of the container portion 18, mitigating the force applied to the bottom of the container portion 18 and preventing deformation.

Frozen ingredients 24 are arranged on the upper surface of the flange portion 16, covering the opening edge 20 of the container portion 18. The lid 14 covers all of these ingredients 24, preventing them from moving, and overlaps with the container body 12, sealing all of the sushi rice 22 and ingredients 24 in place. The lid 14 is held in almost tight contact with all of the ingredients.

The container containing the frozen sushi rice 22 and toppings 24 is frozen and then sold, for example, in a store. The purchaser places the container directly in a microwave oven and defrosts the contents by setting the specified power and time.

When thawing begins, the container portion 18 containing the sushi rice 22 is placed face down on a plate (not shown) of the microwave oven. Microwaves are irradiated from the plate side, heating the sushi rice 22 to a moderate temperature and thawing it. At this time, the sushi toppings 24 arranged on top of the sushi rice 22 are thawed to a moderate temperature because the microwave irradiation intensity is weakened by the sushi rice 22.

Microwaves reflected from the microwave oven plate are radiated evenly across the entire sushi rice 22 through the walls of the container 18, allowing the sushi rice 22 to quickly thaw and reach the appropriate temperature. It is a good idea to measure the optimal microwave irradiation intensity and thawing time according to the shape of the container and type of sushi, and then label the container or packaging.

In addition, since the lid 14 is held in almost tight contact with the ingredients 24, if you are concerned that the ingredients 24 may not have thawed sufficiently, you can adjust the thawing by pouring hot water over the lid 14.

After thawing, it is recommended to lift the container body 12 upward with the lid 14 facing downward. At this time, the container body 12 can be lifted by grasping the recessed portion 28. In this way, the container body 12 is removed with the sushi rice 22 placed on the lid 14 with the topping 24 facing downward. After that, the serving plate is placed on top and the whole thing is turned upside down, and the thawed sushi is arranged in a circle at regular intervals on the plate.

All of the toppings 24 fit into the boat-shaped portion 36 of the lid 14, so the toppings 24 do not shift position and the sushi maintains its normal shape. For example, if the lid 14 is made translucent, it is possible to check whether the toppings 24 are lined up correctly on the rice 22.

We actually created containers like those shown in Figures 3 to 5 by press-molding a 0.7mm thick polycarbonate sheet and defrosted them in a microwave oven on the defrost mode for 120 seconds. When defrosted for 160 seconds, the temperature of the rice was 49°C and the temperature of the topping was 8°C. When defrosted for 160 seconds, the temperature of the rice was 65°C and the temperature of the topping was 13°C. This range is the optimum value.

In other words, it is now possible to defrost under optimal conditions. Therefore, it is an ideal container for sushi restaurants that defrost food in-house and serve it to customers, as well as for customers who purchase the container and defrost it. It is also safe because it does not use metal foil or other materials to block microwaves. Both the container and lid can be easily press-molded, significantly reducing manufacturing costs.

12 Container body 14 Lid 16 Flange portion 18 Container portion 20 Opening edge 22 Shari 24 Neta 26 Protrusion 28 Recess 30 Body periphery 32 Lid periphery 36 Boat-bottom-shaped portion

Claims (2)

The container body and the lid are stacked together for use,
The container body and lid are molded plastic bodies that are heat-resistant and can withstand the heat that is applied when thawing in a microwave oven.
The container body has a container portion that accommodates a plurality of frozen sushi rice pieces arranged side by side so as to surround each piece of sushi rice, and a flange portion that aligns the container portions at regular intervals and connects and integrates their opening edges,
When the frozen ingredients are arranged in contact with the opening edges of the container parts provided in the flange parts and covering the opening edges,
The lid and the flange portion sandwich all ingredients between them to prevent the ingredients from moving, and the space between the lid and the container body is sealed.
The flange portion is provided with a protrusion that maintains the distance between the flange portion and the lid at a set value, and a recess that is deep enough to reach at least the bottom of the container portion. A method for manufacturing a sushi thawing container as described in claim 1, characterized in that the flange portion of the container body and the container portion are press-molded together, and an embossed portion is provided on the bottom of the container portion that contains the rice, thereby giving the embossed portion more flexibility than other portions .