JPS6250102B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

The present invention relates to a method for sterilizing spices, and more particularly to a method for sterilizing spices that is extremely safe from a food hygiene perspective and kills pathogenic bacteria adhering to the surface of spice holes without substantially impairing the flavor. . In general, ethylene oxide and propylene oxide are considered to be optimal as disinfectants for spices, and their disinfectant effects have been reported by many experimenters. However, the above-mentioned disinfectants are flammable and combustible, and when used, there are various problems in handling, such as the need to prepare the surrounding work environment and processing in a sealed state. It cannot be said that it is suitable for industrial practical use. In addition, sterilization methods using gamma ray irradiation have been attempted and achieved some success, but they are not permitted under the Food Sanitation Law and therefore lack practicality. In addition, sterilization using ultraviolet light is also carried out.
Ultraviolet rays can cause deterioration of the main ingredients of spices. Despite this, many experimenters have reported various experimental results regarding the sterilization effects of the above-mentioned sterilization methods.The reason is that many of the main components of spices are volatile, so heat sterilization is used to sterilize them. This is fatal to spices, and therefore, heat sterilization must be avoided (General Shokuhin Kogyo: Seiseisha Koukaku Edition, p. 1130, Special Publication No. 11248, 1973), which has become common knowledge among those skilled in the art. In order to develop a sterilization method that does not apply heat, which is different from heat sterilization,
This is because the necessity is pressing. Under these circumstances, the inventors of the present invention conducted research on a method for sterilizing spices, and found that the spices are not crushed, but their surfaces are thoroughly moistened with water, and then heat treatment is performed at high temperatures for a short period of time. It has been found that pathogenic bacteria adhering to the skin of spice holes can be killed by heating, and the spiciness of spices is hardly impaired by the heat treatment. This finding fundamentally overturns the conventional wisdom in the industry that heat sterilization must be avoided because many of the main components of spices are volatile. That is, the present invention sterilizes spices, which has not been done at all in the conventional literature, by moistening the surface of the hole with water, then sterilizing and drying it, so that the moisture content is approximately the same as the moisture content before wetting. This is the first time that it has become possible to implement this method effectively. The gist of the present invention, which was completed based on such knowledge, is to fully moisten the surface of the whole spice with water without pulverizing it, then sterilize and dry it at a temperature of 100°C or higher, and then remove the spice before wetting it. A method for sterilizing spices, which is characterized in that the moisture content is approximately the same as the moisture content of spices, and the spices are then cooled by a conventional method and crushed if necessary. The content of the present invention will be specifically described below. Spices that can be used in the sterilization method of the present invention include koshiyo, cardamom, nutmeg, mace, allspice, anise, caraway, cumin, fenugreek, coriander, clove, and laurel. In the sterilization method of the present invention, first, the surface of the whole spice is thoroughly moistened with water without pulverizing the spice. Specific methods include immersing the spice holes in water, showering the spice holes with water, flowing the spice holes and spraying water on them, but are not limited to these methods. The important thing in this process is to spread the water to every corner of the spice hall, so that the heat from the heating in the later process quickly spreads to every corner of the surface of the hall, and it adheres to the surface. It kills pathogenic bacteria. Therefore, if the surface of the hole is insufficiently moistened with water, the sterilizing effect will be reduced accordingly. In order to avoid such a situation, it is most effective and simple to immerse the spice holes in water, and the immersion time is preferably about 0.5 to 2 minutes. Utilizing ultrasonic waves for water immersion and/
Alternatively, wetting of the hole surface can be promoted by adding a hydrophilic emulsifier such as sucrose fatty acid ester or sorbitan fatty acid ester. The purpose of water immersion is to sufficiently wet the hole surface, but as an additional effect, foreign matter adhering to the hole surface can be removed. Furthermore, a more efficient sterilizing effect can be expected by moistening with water in which a water-soluble sterilizing agent such as alcohol is dissolved. Next, the spice holes whose surfaces have been sufficiently moistened with water in the above step are sterilized and dried at a temperature of 100° C. or higher to bring the moisture content to approximately the same level as the moisture content before wetting. Here, "sterilizing and drying at a temperature of 100°C or higher" includes both cases of sterilizing and drying at a temperature of 100°C or higher, and cases of drying after sterilizing at a temperature of 100°C or higher. The heating temperature is determined with the main purpose of sterilizing effect.
When the heating temperature is below 100℃, the sterilization effect decreases. Furthermore, it takes a long time to dry the spices to a moisture content similar to that of the spice wholes before the moistening process, which causes loss of the spiciness of the spices. Methods for sterilization and drying include fluidized bed drying, flash drying, and ventilation drying, but the fluidized bed drying method is preferable in terms of condition settings and equipment. It is preferable to return the moisture content of the spice to the moisture content before wetting for 3 minutes in terms of the sterilizing effect and the effect of retaining the spiciness of the spice. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the course of temperature rise inside the fluidized bed dryer when hot air of 120° C. is blown into the fluidized bed dryer. In this drawing, the vertical axis represents temperature (° C.) and the horizontal axis represents time (minutes). 〓〓〓 indicates a case where the amount of air blown is large, and 〓〓〓 indicates a case where the amount of air blown is small. When heating the above, it is better to draw the temperature rise curve shown by 〓〓〓 among the temperature rise curves shown in Fig. 1, because the sterilization effect will be achieved in a shorter time even under the same temperature conditions, and the flavor of the spice will be improved. The effect on spiciness is also minimized. In other words, in the case of 〓〓〓, the temperature inside the fluidized bed dryer rises rapidly, reaching 120℃ in a short time, and the water on the surface of the spice hole evaporates in a short time, so the subsequent sterilization is the same as dry sterilization. As a result, the bactericidal effect and the flavor retention effect tend to decrease. On the other hand, in the case of 〓〓〓, the temperature rises more slowly than in the case of 〓〓〓.
Therefore, for the opposite reason, both the bactericidal effect and the spiciness retention effect are excellent. The reason why the moisture content of the sterilized spice holes is made to be approximately the same as that before wetting is mainly for the purpose of preserving the spice holes. The spice wholes that have been sterilized and dried in the above process are then cooled, but the cooling method is not particularly limited and may be carried out in accordance with a conventional method. Appropriate.
The sterilized spice holes thus obtained may be ground into powdered spices by using a stamp-type grinder, high-speed grinder, etc., if necessary. A comparative experimental example for confirming the effectiveness of the sterilization method of the present invention described above will be shown below. Comparative Experiment Example 1 (Black Koshiyo Hole) The treatment conditions are shown in Table 1.

【table】

[Table] The time for immersing Shokuro Koshiyo Hole in water is 1 minute. The experimental results are shown in Table 2. The evaluation is divided into three categories: the number of coliform bacteria, sensory evaluation of fragrance using a 10-point scoring method, and brief evaluation.The number of coliform bacteria is measured using the BGLB method, and the sensory evaluation is performed using a specialist panel that uses sterilized black koshiyo hole as a powder. 10 people gave 10 points to those with untreated holes and 0 points to the worst ones.
The scent of black koshiyo was evaluated using a 10-point scoring system, and the average value of the sum of the scores for each sample was taken as the sensory evaluation score. Moisture content was measured by Karl Fischer method. As shown in Table 2, samples A to D sterilized by the method of the present invention were negative for the number of coliform bacteria, and their pulverized products had an excellent sensory evaluation score of 9.0 or higher, and the odor of the pulverized products of untreated holes. It was almost comparable. On the other hand, although the comparison hall was superior in terms of sensory evaluation, the number of coliform bacteria was positive, and no bactericidal effect could be expected. In addition, the comparison hall did not have any sterilizing effect or the effect of preserving the spiciness of spices.

【table】

[Table] Comparative Experimental Example 2 The piperine content and essential oil content of Samples A to D, which were sterilized by the method of the present invention obtained in Comparative Experimental Example 1, and untreated holes were measured and compared using the ASTA method. The results are shown in Table 3. However, each content is per anhydride.

[Table] As is clear from the results in Table 3, the piperine content and essential oil content of Samples A to D sterilized by the method of the present invention were almost the same as those of the untreated whole. This shows that the sterilization method of the present invention has almost no adverse effect on black koshiyohole. The results of Comparative Experimental Examples 1 and 2 above showed similar trends not only for black koshiyo but also for other spices. As described above, by sterilizing spice holes according to the present invention, pathogenic bacteria adhering to the surface of the spice holes can be completely killed without substantially impairing the original spiciness of the spices. .
Furthermore, the above sterilization method can be carried out by thoroughly moistening the surface of the spice hall with water and then treating it at a temperature of 100℃ or higher, so it is extremely safe from a food hygiene perspective, and is also simple from an industrial practical standpoint. Advantageously, it can be carried out by means of a device. Example 1 200 g of black koshiyo holes with a moisture content of 11.0% were placed in a mesh basket and immersed in water for 30 seconds while being vibrated. The water content of black koshiyohole after soaking is
It was 24.0%. Thereafter, it was immediately placed in a fluidized bed dryer and treated with hot air at 120°C for 1 minute. The course of temperature rise in the heating atmosphere at this time was as shown by the curve shown by 〓〓〓 in Fig. 1, and the moisture content of the obtained black koshiyohole was 10.5%. Next, the black koshiyohole was cooled to a temperature of 25° C. under cold air, and then pulverized using a stamp-type pulverizer. The obtained black koshiyo powder had satisfactory bactericidal effect and spiciness retention effect. Example 2 Allspice whole 200 with a moisture content of 11.0%
g was sprayed with water to thoroughly wet its surface.
The moisture content of the obtained allspice whole is 20.0
It was %. Thereafter, it was placed in a single layer on a mesh conveyor and treated with hot air at about 100°C for 2 minutes. The course of temperature rise in the heating atmosphere at this time is shown in Figure 1.
The moisture content of the obtained allspice was 10.0%. Next, this was cooled under cold air to a product temperature of 20°C. The obtained allspice whole had satisfactory bactericidal effect and spiciness retention effect.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 shows the temperature inside the fluidized bed dryer when hot air of 120°C is blown into the fluidized bed dryer as a specific example of the heating atmosphere temperature rise curve when sterilizing and drying spices at a temperature of 100°C or higher. It is a drawing showing the progress of the rise. The vertical axis represents temperature (°C), and the horizontal axis represents time (minutes). 〓〓〓 represents the temperature rise course when the air flow is large, and 〓〓〓 represents the temperature rise when the air flow is small.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. After thoroughly moistening the surface of the whole spice with water without pulverizing it, sterilize and dry it at a temperature of 100℃ or higher to bring the moisture content to approximately the same level as the moisture content before moistening. A method for sterilizing spices, which is characterized by cooling by a conventional method and pulverizing if necessary.