JPH062028B2 - Method and apparatus for dehydration or drying of food - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a method of indirectly contacting a food with a seasoning or a desiccant to dehydrate or dry the food, and an apparatus used in this method.

<Prior Art> A conventional technology for drying or dehydrating a food by bringing a desiccant (dehydrating agent) into contact with the food through a semipermeable membrane is disclosed in, for example, JP-A-56
-124404 and JP-A-57-187002 are known. In addition, Japanese Patent Publication No. 59-34 discloses a technique for dehydrating and salting foods through a semipermeable membrane.

These conventional techniques utilize the selective permeability of the semipermeable membrane.

<Problems to be Solved by the Invention> However, these conventional techniques utilize only the osmotic pressure of the food and the desiccant or the water absorbing ability of the desiccant, and the migration of the target components including water is Since it is driven by osmotic pressure or water absorption, the desired dehydration,
The time required for drying or seasoning was at least about 10 hours, usually 1 to several days. Further, the above-mentioned conventional technique is not suitable for industrial mass production because it requires too much manpower during actual production.

<Means for Solving Problems> The present invention is a method and an apparatus for solving the above problems, in which a food and a seasoning or a desiccant are individually packaged in an easily water-permeable material to improve elasticity. Having a sealed container with an opening by a gas-impermeable film, in a rigid container having an exhaust hole, the packaged food and seasoning or desiccant, at least one side of the food seasoning or desiccant Are placed so that they contact each other, and the air inside the rigid container is discharged to maintain a depressurized state, a dehydration seasoning or drying method for food, and an opening portion of the rigid container provided with an exhaust hole, It is a dehydrating or drying device for foods, which is sealed with a stretchable and impermeable film.

<Operation> In the present invention, the water contained in the food is absorbed by the seasoning or the desiccant through the easily water-permeable material. At this time, liquid water is present on the contact surface of the package in which the food and the seasoning or the desiccant are respectively packaged, and when the seasoning is used, the seasoning is dissolved in the water and transferred to the food.

Further, the packaged food and the package of seasoning or desiccant, when the pressure in the dehydration seasoning or drying system is reduced,
It is pressurized by the atmospheric pressure through the membrane of the device to promote the transfer of water from the food and the transfer of the seasoning to the food.

EXAMPLES Next, the present invention will be further described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an explanatory view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

The device of the present invention is one in which the opening (101) of the rigid container (10) is sealed with a film body (12), and an exhaust hole (16) is provided in the body of the rigid container (10). Has been.

The rigid container (10) is preferably made of a metal having excellent strength, and is preferably one that can withstand corrosion by moisture, particularly salt water.

The exhaust hole (16) provided in the body of the rigid container (10) is for exhausting the air in the system and is connected to an exhaust means (not shown) such as a vacuum pump.

The film body (12) is made of a stretchable and impermeable material, and specifically, a rubber material such as synthetic rubber or natural rubber, or a sheet of soft vinyl chloride resin can be used. The film body (12) extends inward when the pressure inside the device is reduced,
The food and seasonings stored in the apparatus are deformed and brought into contact with each other according to the shape of the package, and atmospheric pressure is applied to the package.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the membrane body (12) is fixed by being fixed to the opening (101) of the rigid container (10) by the lid (14). If the lid (14) is removed, the membrane body (12) is fixed. (12) is provided so that it can be removed. In this case, food (20), seasoning (30), etc., which will be described later, will not be opened in the opening (10
It can be taken in and out from 1). In addition, the membrane body (1
The method of attaching 2) to the opening (101) is arbitrary, and it does not matter if it is fixed and attached to the opening (101). In this case, place the food (20) on the body of the rigid container (10).
Means for putting in and taking out etc. are provided as appropriate. In any case, the rigid container (10) is configured such that the opening (101) is sealed by the film body (12) and the reduced pressure atmosphere can be formed as a whole.

The food (20) to which the present invention is applied contains a relatively large amount of water for that purpose, and is fish, meat, vegetables, seaweed, or the like. More specifically, fish such as salmon, horse mackerel, saury and karei is used as it is, or opened and used as a fillet, dried overnight by dehydration salting, salt salmon, or smoked salmon, etc., which will be described later, a smoke-impregnated salt. You can also make In addition, livestock meat such as beef and pork can be processed into semi-dried meat or raw ham. Vegetables such as bamboo shoots, cucumbers, carrots, radishes and plum seeds can be processed into primary raw materials for pickles by dehydration salting, and seaweeds such as raw young cloth and raw kelp can be processed into semi-dried seafood by dehydrating salting.

The food (20) is packaged with the easily water-permeable material (50).

The easily water-permeable material (50) allows at least moisture leaching from food to pass therethrough, and a plastic film having a moisture permeability of a certain amount or more, or paper, non-woven fabric, microporous film, cloth, or the like is used. More specifically, in the case of a plastic film, the migration of water or the like is due to the intramolecular diffusion of the water or the like that permeates, so that the water vapor permeability is at least 100, preferably 500 g / m ² , 24 hr, 90 ° C., 40% RH or more. And a film of polyvinyl alcohol, cellophane, or the like. The non-woven fabric and the microporous membrane are made of plastic such as polyethylene and polypropylene. The migration of water, etc., in materials such as non-woven fabrics and microporous membranes, including paper and cloth, is a pinhole diffusion in which water, etc. passes through the pores of the material. To be done. The easily water-permeable material (50) may be a single body of the above-mentioned materials, a laminate of these materials, or a laminate of other materials, as long as the required properties are not impaired.

In the present invention, the water content of the food (20) is basically absorbed by the seasoning (30) or the desiccant (40).

The seasoning agent (30) is used for absorbing water and seasoning foods, and is non-liquid. Specific examples thereof include salt, sugar, miso, sake lees, and synthetic seasonings, all of which contain a water-soluble component. When a liquid seasoning such as a smoked liquid is used, the seasoning (30) or the inorganic porous material can be impregnated with the seasoning.

The desiccant (40) is preferably a water-insoluble inorganic material such as silica gel or zeolite.

The seasoning agent (30) and the desiccant (40) can be packaged using a water-permeable material (51) similar to the water-permeable material (50) used for packaging the food (20). .

Water-permeable material (50), material of (51) and seasoning (30)
Alternatively, the selection of the desiccant (40) is made according to the purpose.

That is, when only the dehydration (drying) of the food (20) is intended, all of the above-mentioned materials can be used as the easily water-permeable materials (50) and (51), and the desiccant (40) is used. It is generally used. However, when at least one of the food (20) and the desiccant (40) is packaged with the easily water-permeable material (50) and (51) made of the plastic film described above, the seasoning described above as the desiccant (40) is performed. Agent (3
It may be possible to use 0). That is, the water-permeable material (50) made of the plastic film described above,
This is because (51) has a property as a semipermeable membrane, and there is a combination that does not allow the seasoning agent (30) dissolved in water to permeate depending on its substance selective permeability. The selective permeability of the semipermeable membrane is basically dependent on the size of the molecule of the permeable substance. Since the seasoning agent (30) has a relatively large saccharide molecule, it can be used as a desiccant (40). It can be preferably used.

On the other hand, in the case of dehydration seasoning, the water-permeable material (50), (5) for packaging the food (20) and the seasoning (30) is used.
In 1), each must pass the desired seasoning component together with water. The easily water-permeable materials (50) and (51) made of the plastic film described above are impermeable to some components of the seasoning agent (30), and are therefore limited by the seasoning agent (30).

As described above, the seasoning agent (30) and the desiccating agent (40) are individually packaged, but the seasoning agent (30) and the desiccating agent (40) can be mixed in an appropriate ratio if necessary. Is.
Especially when dehydration and seasoning are performed, mixing as described above may be effective in the case of adjusting the speed and concentration of dehydration and seasoning.

The method of packaging the food (20), the seasoning (30) and the desiccant (40) in the easily water-permeable material (50), (51) is not particularly limited, but generally the easily water-permeable material (50). , (51) having a heat-sealing property, formed into a bag shape, filled with the food (20) and the like, and heat-sealed at the opening to easily seal.

The form of the sealed package has as many planes as possible, and is preferably plate-like. This is because the food (20) and the seasoning (30) or the desiccant (40) are used as they come into contact with each other during dehydration seasoning or drying, as will be described later. Shift in terms of face.

In addition, when a breathable material such as a plastic film is used as the easily water-permeable material (50) or (51), the food (2
It is preferable to perform deaeration packaging when sealing after filling 0) and the like. This is because, as will be described later, the present invention is because dehydration seasoning or drying is performed under reduced pressure, and when it is further aerated packaging, when transferring moisture or the like, the food (20)
This is because there is a risk of insufficient contact between the seasoning (30) and the like.

Further, the easily water-permeable material (51) for packaging the seasoning (30) and the desiccant (40) preferably has air permeability. This is because the seasoning agent (30) and the desiccating agent (40) may be dried after use and reused in some cases.

As described above, the easily water-permeable material (50), the food (20) packaged in the (51), and the seasoning (30) or the desiccant (4
The package (0) is housed in the rigid container (10) of the device so that the seasoning agent (30) or the desiccant (40) contacts at least one side of the food (20). A preferred arrangement is to alternately stack the seasoning (30) or desiccant (40) on both sides of the food product (20) as shown in FIG.

When the food (20) and the seasoning (30) or the desiccant (40) are stored, the air in the rigid container (10) is gradually discharged from the exhaust hole (16) by an exhaust means such as a vacuum pump, Reduce the pressure inside.

The degree and speed of depressurization are appropriately selected according to the pressure resistance, water content, shape, etc. of the food (20). If the food (20) is meat, where appearance is relatively important, 300 to 500 mmHg, and appearance is very important. 50 to 250 mmH for pickled vegetables etc.
g is good.

Atmospheric pressure is applied to the food (20) etc. through the membrane (12) according to the degree of decompression in the system, and this pressure promotes the leaching of water from the food (20) and the transfer of seasoning components. It Especially, since the leaching of water greatly depends on the pressure, the speed of dehydration and seasoning of the food (20) can be adjusted by adjusting the pressure in the system.

The time for maintaining the reduced pressure state is about 5 minutes to 1 hour.

<Test example> As food, 1.0 kg of bamboo shoots were used as polypropylene microporous membrane (N
Two substantially plate-shaped packages wrapped in F sheet, S-140, Tokuyama Soda Co., Ltd. were prepared.

As a seasoning, 1.0 kg of sodium chloride mixed with 1% by weight of sodium glutamate was packed in a polypropylene fiber-polyester fiber mixed non-woven fabric (Melfit, manufactured by Teijin Ltd.) to prepare three substantially plate-shaped packages.

The package of the food and the seasoning was alternately placed so that the seasoning was in contact with both sides of the food, housed in the device, and the device was sealed.

Then, the air in the system was gradually discharged by a 50 / min vacuum pump to 100 mmHg, and this pressure was maintained for 30 minutes.

Then, when the food was taken out, the water content was reduced by about 30% by weight and the salt content was about 20% by weight. The shape of the food did not collapse and the appearance was good and the taste was good.

<Effects of the Invention> As described above, the present invention enables good dehydration and seasoning of foods in an extremely short time. Further, the speed of dehydration and drying and the concentration of seasoning can be arbitrarily adjusted by selecting easily water-permeable materials, seasoning and desiccant, and further selecting pressure and maintaining time of reduced pressure atmosphere, and various foods. Is applicable to. Further, since the food and the seasoning or the desiccant are individually packaged, the food is not directly touched by the seasoning or the desiccant, and dehydration seasoning or drying is uniformly performed. In addition, individually wrapped foods are easy to handle,
It is suitable for industrial mass production, and the seasoning or desiccant is reusable and economical when dried.

[Brief description of drawings]

 FIG. 1 is an explanatory view showing an embodiment of the present invention. (10) ... Rigid container (12) ... Membrane (14) ... Lid (16) ... Exhaust hole (20) ... Food (30) ... Seasoning agent (50), (51) ... Easy water permeable material

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A method of indirectly contacting a food with a seasoning or a desiccant to dehydrate or dry the food, wherein the food and the seasoning or the desiccant are individually packaged in an easily water-permeable material and stretchable. And having an opening sealed with an impermeable film, in a rigid container having an exhaust hole, the packaged food and seasoning or desiccant, at least one side of the food seasoning or drying A method for dehydrating or drying foods, characterized in that the agent is arranged and stored so as to come into contact with it, and air in a rigid container is discharged to maintain a depressurized state. 2. A device for dehydrating or drying food by indirectly contacting the food with a seasoning or a desiccant, wherein the opening of a rigid container provided with an exhaust hole is elastic and impermeable. A dehydration seasoning or drying device for food, which is sealed with the film body of.