Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Products per se – or processes of preparing or treating... – Gels or gelable composition
Reexamination Certificate
2000-08-14
2001-07-17
Bhat, Nina (Department: 1761)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Products per se, or processes of preparing or treating...
Gels or gelable composition
C426S578000, C426S582000, C426S654000, C426S243000, C426S246000, C426S281000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06261625
ABSTRACT:
This invention relates to foods products which can be cooked or reheated using microwave ovens. The invention relates particularly but not exclusively to foodstuffs comprising a core and a coating surrounding the core, for example a battered or breaded product. The invention also relates to non-coated food products and to ingredients for food products.
Many food materials for example natural muscle of poultry, fish or red meat and vegetable or processed foods contain a percentage of water. Most fresh foods contain more than 60% water. Some of this water is bound, that is tightly attached to the constituent cells. The remaining mobile water is available and can be frozen. Available water does not freeze at 0° C. because the dissolved solids lower the freezing point. At −30° C. virtually all available water is frozen. The rate at which foodstuffs are frozen is important because good quality is only obtained by quick freezing, with the best results being achieved by cryogenic freezing. If a food particle frozen to a core temperature of −30° C. is placed in a microwave oven, the microwaves will be primarily absorbed by the frozen available water. Whereas in conventional cooking heat is applied from the outside, in microwave cooking heat is generated from within and the process can be very rapid and quite violent. A consequence of this is to rapidly convert some of the available water to steam during the microwave cycle. After heating the foodstuff “rests” during which period there is a release of water which can drip from the product. This is particularly noticeable for example when heating frozen fish muscle. A microwave oven food product which is enrobed by a coating such as breadcrumb or pastry can become soggy and unpalatable.
Attempts have been made to limit the escape of moisture during microwave cooking by coating the product with a composition adapted to form an impermeable film. These attempts have been unsatisfactory because the natural distribution of water within the coated product can be lost. Furthermore an impenetrable coating or film detracts from the taste and mouth feel of the product.
According to a first aspect of the present invention a method of stabilising a microwave cookable or reheatable food material includes the step of impregnating the product with a stabiliser composition, the composition being adapted to increase in viscosity when irradiated in a microwave oven and being further adapted to decrease in viscosity after irradiation.
According to a second aspect of the present invention a method of stabilising a microwave cookable or reheatable food material including the step of impregnating the product with a stabiliser composition, the composition being adapted to increase in viscosity when irradiated in a microwave oven and being further adapted to decrease in viscosity after irradiation.
The product may be completely impregnated with the stabiliser composition so that the composition is distributed throughout the product. Alternatively the outer portions of the product may be impregnated to form a barrier preventing escape of moisture from the pore during irradiation.
The undesirable formation of an impermeable film is avoided.
REFERENCES:
patent: H1229 (1993-09-01), McGinley et al.
patent: 4948608 (1990-08-01), Stypula et al.
patent: 5266340 (1993-11-01), Samson et al.
patent: 5523102 (1996-06-01), Morasch
patent: 5601861 (1997-02-01), Gerrish et al.
patent: 5736178 (1998-04-01), Cook et al.
Beyer Weaver & Thomas LLP
Bhat Nina
Novus Foods Ltd
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