Frozen concentrated milk and preparation thereof

Details Frozen concentrated milk and preparation thereof Frozen concentrated milk and preparation thereof

1998-07-13

2001-03-27

Nessler, Cynthia L. (Department: 1761)

Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products

Processes

Molding, casting, or shaping

C426S565000, C426S524000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06207213

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to processing concentrated milk, such as a whole or skim milk concentrated by evaporation or other means, and to preparation of a frozen concentrated milk, and thus, the present invention also thereby relates to procedures for freezing products, including milk and milk-based products, and the present invention further relates to use of extrusion equipment and procedures to prepare products.
Until now, it has not been possible to freeze evaporated or concentrated milk in a homogeneous form, i.e., without phase separation being observed in the process of cryoconcentration. Moreover, it has not been possible to freeze a milk concentrate in a form which can give a homogeneous diluted product on dilution with water.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention provides a frozen concentrated milk product, characterized in that it is not stabilized by the addition of a stabilizing agent or emulsifier and that it is in the form of a stable concentrate, the thawing of which leads to a homogeneous liquid.
The invention also provides a process for preparing a frozen concentrated milk characterized in that a concentrated milk containing, by weight, 20 to 40% dry matter is introduced into and transported through a device comprising at least one endless screw rotating in a barrel and cooled in the device to a temperature equal to or lower than −8° C. The concentrated milk employed and the frozen concentrated milk obtained are advantageously free from an emulsifying agent and from an agent for stabilizing the concentrated milk.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
In the context of the invention, a “concentrated milk” means a concentrate obtained by removing water from a raw material chosen from whole milk, milk skimmed to a varying extent, a product equivalent to skimmed milk such as buttermilk and mixtures thereof, a fermented milk and an acidified milk. To a further varying extent, in addition to processing concentrated milks, the process may be carried out with milk-based concentrated products chosen from cream and an acid cream and other milk-based concentrated products chosen from products of the yoghurt type, of sauces and of soups.
A product according to the invention may be sweetened or salted. It may be flavoured and contain flavourings or spices, for example culinary flavourings, fruit, coffee or cocoa flavourings.
Concentration may be carried out by any means, for example by cryoconcentration, osmotic evaporation, microfiltration, ultrafiltration with dilution or, for example by conventional evaporation.
In a particular embodiment, the concentrated frozen product contains an incorporated gas, for example air, i.e., it is expanded.
The concentrated milk of the present invention may be used directly, in particular as a decoration in a refrigerated desert or in an article of frozen confectionery. In this application, it is particularly advantageous that the product can be formed at the outlet from the extrusion die, that it is stable and that it retains its form during a period of time sufficient for it to be served without collapsing or deforming, for example when consumed.
In the particular case of frozen articles of confectionery, the shaping may be carried out by moulding in a container or by extrusion for example with a moveable extrusion die, reproducing the decorations normally achieved by the pastry maker with a piping nozzle. The stability of the shape obtained may be exploited to produce decorations which do not deform during the manufacturing process, in particular during packaging, or during storage.
Once diluted with water, an aerated product according to the invention may have the form of a milk shake containing a stable foam.
According to a preferred embodiment of the process, the raw material is passed through a device provided with two parallel endless screws, rotating in the same direction.
According to a particular embodiment, designed to produce a frozen concentrate for a foaming beverage of the milk shake type, a gas is injected, for example air, into the barrel in a quantity such that 20 to 150% expansion, and preferably 80 to 100% expansion, is obtained.
In order to put the process into practice, the starting material is milk, either whole or skimmed, fresh or reconstituted from powder and optionally cream or butter oil. It is pasteurized, cooled, and then, after preheating, is concentrated by evaporation. The concentrate may be homogenized, preferably hot, under intensive conditions enabling the mean size of the fat globules to be reduced to around 8-20 microns. A concentrate of sugar and flavourings may be optionally added by means of a blender. After cooling to a low temperature, preferably to 2-7° C., the mixture is introduced into a freezer, preferably a twin-screw freezer, for example such as illustrated in the the drawing FIGURE which accompanies this specification disclosure, in which it is mixed by co-rotating screws rotating at a high speed, preferably at 100-600 r.p.m., and optionally, conveyed to an air injection zone where it is expanded by 20-150%, and it is strongly cooled to −8 to −20° C., and then forced through a die.
Work in the twin-screw device is carried out without excessive shear, so that the increase in pressure does not exceed approximately 50 bar in the region of the and so that the product which emerges from the device is characterized by a mean ice crystal diameter of 10 to 34 microns, which is appreciably lower than that obtained with conventional freezers, and so that the product has a mean fat globule size of around 8-20 microns. The result is an improved texture in the sense of better oiliness and better creaminess.


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Arbuckle, “Ice Cream” p. 35, 1977.*
Patent Abstracts of Japan, vol. 5, No. 85 (C-57) [757], Abstract of Japanese Patent Document JP-A-56 029962 (1981).

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