A high-efficiency factory oyster shucking technology and its application

Abstract

The application relates to the field of food processing, and particularly discloses a factory high-efficiency oyster shell opening technology for fresh oyster meat and application thereof. The method comprises the steps of removing ropes, drum cleaning, low-temperature blanching for opening shells, cooling and manual meat taking. The application combines the drum cleaning and low-temperature blanching technology of a new oyster special cleaning machine, the oyster surface is cleaned through the new oyster special cleaning machine, and a 1-5mm shell opening effect is formed, then 3-4% salt water at 50-60 DEG C is used for blanching, the closed shell muscle protein is slightly denatured, the shell opening range is expanded to 5-20mm, and finally the meat is taken manually after cooling and stored. Compared with the traditional oyster opening method of directly prying open with an oyster opening knife held in hand, the meat taking speed is increased by more than 86%, the labor intensity is reduced, the hands of workers are prevented from being injured, the freshness and integrity of the oyster meat are ensured, the loss of nutritional components is small, the cost is controllable, and the method is suitable for factory large-scale production of oysters.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of food processing, specifically to a factory-scale, high-efficiency shell-opening technology for fresh oyster meat and its application, which can significantly improve the efficiency of shell-opening and meat extraction while ensuring the freshness and integrity of the oyster meat and reducing the intensity of manual labor. Background Technology

[0002] Oyster processing has long faced a severe technical bottleneck: due to significant individual differences in the shape, size, and thickness of oyster shells, and the hardness of the shells and the strong adhesion of the adductor muscle, the oyster meat extraction process still heavily relies on traditional manual methods. Traditional manual extraction requires workers to forcefully insert an oyster cleaver into the shell, using the blade to separate the adductor muscle from the shell, and then pry open the shell to extract the meat. This method is not only difficult, time-consuming, and labor-intensive, resulting in extremely low production efficiency and failing to meet the demands of large-scale factory production, but the high intensity of manual labor also easily leads to occupational injuries such as hand cuts and strains, posing a potential threat to workers' health. Therefore, developing an efficient, low-cost oyster meat extraction technology that ensures the quality of oyster meat has become a critical issue that the oyster processing industry urgently needs to address.

[0003] To address the aforementioned problems, technicians in related fields have made numerous attempts, resulting in various technical solutions, but all have their own limitations. Patent application number 202511098238.7 discloses a shell-opening solution for Fujian oysters. Its core method involves using a 0.5 mol / L-0.6 mol / L magnesium chloride solution and / or a 0.5 mol / L-0.6 mol / L glucose solution to paralyze the Fujian oysters before opening them. This biological shell-opening method can achieve an oyster opening rate of over 90%, reducing manual labor to some extent. However, this method has significant drawbacks: each liter of solution can only soak 5-10 oysters, and the soaking time is as long as 4-8 hours, resulting in huge solution consumption and extremely low shell-opening efficiency, making it unsuitable for large-scale factory production.

[0004] Patent application number 202421996705.9 discloses a fully automatic oyster shucking machine. Its core solution achieves full automation of oyster shucking and meat extraction through the coordinated operation of a cleaning mechanism, a conveying mechanism, a shucking mechanism, and a meat extraction mechanism. This technology eliminates the need for direct manual intervention in the shucking process, reducing labor intensity. However, the shucking mechanism uses mechanical fingers to directly pry open live oysters. Since the oyster meat is tightly adhered to the shell by the adductor muscle, forcibly prying it open easily causes damage and breakage of the oyster meat, compromising its integrity and leading to nutrient loss, thus affecting product quality.

[0005] Patent application number 202411234572.6 discloses a microwave oyster shell-opening device. Its core solution optimizes the microwave heating method to address the issue of varying oyster thicknesses by coordinating a frame, feeding mechanism, conveying mechanism, microwave heating mechanism, and control mechanism, thus improving the shell-opening effect to some extent. However, the manufacturing cost and energy consumption of the microwave heating device are both high, leading to a significant increase in oyster processing costs and hindering its market application.

[0006] Patent application number 202323399090.X discloses a shell-opening device for steamed oysters. Its core solution involves a conveyor mechanism transporting the steamed oysters from a container to a shell-opening mechanism for automatic flaring and opening. This technology is easy to operate and produces good shell-opening results. However, this technology is only suitable for pre-steamed oysters, limiting the applications of steamed oyster meat and failing to meet the needs of processing fresh oysters. Furthermore, the steaming process leads to the loss of some of the fresh flavor and nutrients in the oyster meat.

[0007] In summary, although existing technologies have made some progress in reducing the intensity of manual labor, problems such as oyster meat damage, nutrient loss, high processing costs, or low processing efficiency still exist in factory production. Therefore, there is an urgent need for a low-cost, high-efficiency oyster shell opening and meat extraction technology that can ensure the freshness and integrity of oyster meat. Summary of the Invention

[0008] The purpose of this invention is to overcome the problems of low efficiency, easy damage to oyster meat, nutrient loss, high processing costs, and narrow applicability in existing oyster shell opening and meat extraction technologies. This invention provides a highly efficient, factory-scale oyster shell opening technology and its application. Through innovative technology combinations and equipment, this method eliminates the need to differentiate between oyster sizes, ensuring the freshness and integrity of the oyster meat in industrial production while significantly improving the efficiency of oyster shell opening and meat extraction, reducing manual labor intensity, and maintaining controllable costs, making it suitable for large-scale factory production.

[0009] To achieve the above-mentioned objectives, the technical solution adopted by the present invention is as follows: A highly efficient, factory-scale method for opening fresh oyster meat includes the following steps: S1. Remove the strings: Remove the strings from the fresh oysters to obtain single oysters that are not stuck together; S2. Drum cleaning: The single oyster is fed into a new type of oyster cleaning machine equipped with a drum, and the oysters are cleaned by rubbing and colliding with each other for 3-8 minutes to obtain clean oysters with a clean surface and a shell opening range of 1-5mm; the new type of oyster cleaning machine includes a drum, and multiple rollers are installed around the drum, with each roller surface covered with brush bristles; a spray device is installed above the new type of oyster cleaning machine; S3. Low-temperature blanching and shell opening: The cleaned oysters are transported to a blanching machine, where they are completely immersed in a blanching solution at 50-60°C for 5-10 minutes to obtain oysters with a shell opening range of 5-20 mm. S4. Cooling: The opened oysters are transferred to a cooling machine and cooled until the center temperature of the oyster meat is below 30°C to obtain cooled oysters; S5. Manual meat extraction: The oyster is manually pried open from the opening of the cooled oyster, the oyster meat is removed, drained, cooled, and packaged to obtain fresh, factory-produced oyster meat.

[0010] Furthermore, the roller is U-shaped; the spraying device includes a network of spray pipes consisting of multiple spray pipes installed 1-2 meters above the roller, with multiple spray holes on the surface of the spray pipes; the brush bristles on the roller surface are nylon or metal bristles; after the roller cleaning treatment, the oysters have a 100% shell opening rate.

[0011] Furthermore, the blanching solution in S3 is a brine solution with a mass concentration of 3-4%, which completely submerges the oysters in the blanching solution at 50-60°C for 5-8 minutes, resulting in 95-99% of the oysters having an opening diameter of 5-20 mm.

[0012] Furthermore, the interior of the cooler in S4 is filled with flat, uneven rollers with brush filaments attached to them. The oysters continuously tumble and move forward inside the cooler while being cooled by sprayed cold water.

[0013] Furthermore, in step S5, the water seeping out of the oyster meat is drained away through an inclined grid drainage platform. The cooling process includes packing the drained oyster meat into food-grade packaging bags, weighing them, sealing them, pre-cooling them with an ice-water mixture, and then transferring them to a -5℃ to -10℃ freezer for 4 to 6 hours.

[0014] Furthermore, the manual meat extraction rate in S5 is more than 86% higher than that of oyster shuckers directly prying open unprocessed fresh oysters with oyster shuckers holding oyster shuckers.

[0015] Furthermore, the industrially prepared oyster meat prepared by this invention can be used in the preparation of oyster juice, oyster sauce, oyster powder, oyster peptides, frozen oyster meat, and oyster meat pre-cooked dishes, resulting in high-quality products.

[0016] Beneficial effects Compared with the prior art, the present invention has significant inventiveness and advantages, as detailed below: Firstly, this invention creatively combines a novel oyster-specific cleaning machine with low-temperature blanching technology, enabling fresh oysters to open with a shell width of 5-20mm, achieving an opening rate of over 95%. This significantly improves the manual meat extraction rate by over 86%, while ensuring the oyster meat is cooked to within 10% of its full potential. This technological combination is the core innovation for improving oyster shell opening and meat extraction efficiency and ensuring oyster meat quality. The novel oyster-specific cleaning machine, through the synergistic action of a U-shaped roller, roller shaft, spiral shaft, and water spray device, cleans the oyster surface and achieves a 1-5mm shell opening width through tumbling and friction, with a 100% opening rate. This creates a channel for the subsequent blanching solution to enter the oyster's interior. The low-temperature blanching technology utilizes 3-4% brine at 50℃-60℃ to cause slight denaturation of the oyster's adductor muscle protein, achieving a shell opening width of 5-20mm while preventing overcooking of the oyster meat. This technological combination fundamentally reduces the adhesion between the adductor muscle and the oyster shell. Workers no longer need to forcibly open the shell; they can simply use a regular oyster shucker to gently lift the shell from the opening point to scrape out the oyster meat. This significantly improves the efficiency of shell opening and meat extraction, achieving a manual meat extraction rate of 7-9 kg / h. Simultaneously, it completely avoids hand injuries caused by excessive force, significantly reducing the intensity of manual labor. The principle behind this is that the 1-5 mm shell-opening structure provides a rapid penetration path for the blanching solution. After the adductor muscle protein undergoes slight denaturation, it loses some of its contractile and adhesive abilities, expanding the automatic shell-opening range to 5-20 mm and making shell-meat separation easier. This improves manual meat extraction efficiency while protecting worker safety.

[0017] Secondly, this invention creates a novel oyster-specific cleaning machine. Its function is to effectively remove mud and debris from the surface of oysters while achieving efficient shell opening, with a 100% opening rate within a 1-5mm range. The novel oyster-specific cleaning machine uses a roller covered with bristles installed along a drum, with a spiral shaft installed in the center of the drum, and a spray system installed directly above the drum. As the oysters tumble in the drum, they come into contact with the bristles and rub against each other, peeling away surface mud and debris. A water spray network positioned 1-2 meters above the machine generates sufficient water pressure through gravity, and the multi-spray nozzle design ensures ample water flow, thoroughly cleaning the oysters and preventing contamination of subsequent processing and product quality. After tumbling for a period of time, the cleaned oysters open at the closed position of their upper and lower shells, with an opening rate of 100% within a 1-5mm range. The central spiral shaft allows for automatic oyster feeding and unloading. Ordinary oyster cleaning machines can only remove surface mud and sand from oysters, failing to open them up completely. Occasionally, oysters may open due to collision and friction, but the opening range is less than 1mm, and the mechanical opening rate is less than 1%, excluding naturally opened oysters. This invention, however, creates a novel oyster-specific cleaning machine that not only removes surface mud and deposits but also ensures 100% shell opening. Its principle is based on the mechanical friction between the brush bristles and the oysters, and between oysters themselves, which first efficiently removes surface mud and deposits. Sufficient water pressure and volume create a powerful rinsing effect. Combined with the friction and collision of the oysters as they tumble, this causes them to open slightly. The oysters then move forward along the spiral axis, ensuring automatic feeding and unloading.

[0018] Furthermore, this invention employs blanching conditions of 50-60℃, 5-10 minutes, and 3-4% brine to treat oysters cleaned using a novel oyster-specific cleaning machine. This reduces the adhesion between the oyster's adductor muscle and shell, increasing the opening width between the upper and lower shells to 5-20mm, with over 95% of oysters achieving the required opening width. This enables efficient meat extraction, ensuring the oyster meat is cooked to no more than 10% doneness, effectively preserving the integrity and nutritional components of the oyster meat. The low-temperature blanching conditions of 50-60℃ cause only slight denaturation of the adductor muscle protein, preventing overcooking. The use of 3-4% brine reduces the exchange of substances between the oyster meat and the blanching solution, minimizing the loss of flavor compounds and nutrients. Compared to existing technologies that use microwave or steam heating, which result in juice loss, uneven heating, and overcooking, this invention's low-temperature blanching method is gentler, more uniform, and faster, maximizing the preservation of the oyster's fresh flavor and nutrients. The yield of oyster meat obtained is 10-11%, compared to a 15-18% change in firmness and a 4-5% change in elasticity compared to raw oyster meat from live oysters. The principle is that a blanching solution of suitable temperature and specific concentration enters the oyster through a 1-5mm channel created in the previous drum washing process. Combined with appropriate time, this controls the degree of protein denaturation, reducing the adhesion between the adductor muscle and the oyster shell, allowing the upper and lower shells to separate at the closure point, resulting in a 5-20mm opening width. It also avoids excessive denaturation leading to hardened meat and nutrient loss.

[0019] Furthermore, the cooling step of this invention employs a spraying of cold water to rapidly cool the blanched oysters to a core temperature below 30°C. This rapid cooling not only prevents the oyster meat from continuing to cook due to residual heat, ensuring its tenderness, but also effectively inhibits the rapid reproduction of microorganisms, extending the fresh shelf life of the oyster meat. The principle behind this is that microorganisms reproduce fastest in a temperature range above 30°C and below 40°C. Rapidly lowering the core temperature of the oyster meat to below 30°C allows for further cooling, quickly removing it from the optimal temperature range for rapid microbial growth, thereby ensuring product freshness.

[0020] Subsequently, the oyster meat produced by this invention can be used to produce products such as oyster juice, oyster powder, oyster sauce, oyster peptides, frozen oyster meat, and pre-cooked oyster dishes. The oyster meat produced using this invention has excellent freshness, fully retaining its nutrients and umami substances. The volatile basic nitrogen content of the oyster meat is 6-7 mg / 100g, the amino acid nitrogen content is 0.2-0.3 g / 100g, and the protein content is 10-11 g / 100g. It is an ideal raw material for making condiments such as oyster juice, oyster sauce, and oyster powder, extracting nutritional supplements such as oyster peptides, and processing frozen oyster meat and pre-cooked dishes.

[0021] Finally, the technical solution of this invention is applicable to the direct processing of bulk oysters. After harvesting, bulk oysters do not require sieving for size, and costs are controllable. This invention achieves efficient shell opening and meat extraction at a lower cost through a combination of drum washing and low-temperature blanching. Compared to microwave and high-pressure shell opening technologies, energy consumption and equipment investment are significantly reduced, making it more suitable for large-scale industrial application. Furthermore, the entire process requires no complex chemical reagents or expensive specialized equipment; the process is simple and easy to operate, further reducing production input costs.

[0022] In summary, this invention, through innovative combination of equipment and technology and parameter optimization, significantly improves the rate of shell opening and meat extraction while ensuring the freshness and integrity of oyster meat, reduces labor intensity and production costs, solves many problems existing in existing technologies in factory production, and has broad application prospects. Attached Figure Description

[0023] To more clearly illustrate the technical solution of the present invention, the accompanying drawings will be briefly described below. Obviously, the drawings described below only relate to some embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0024] Figure 1 is a process flow diagram of the oyster shell-opening technology provided in an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 is a structural schematic diagram of the novel oyster-specific cleaning machine provided in an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the roller shaft in the novel oyster-specific cleaning machine provided in this embodiment of the invention.

[0025] Figure 2 and Figure 3 In the middle, 1 - roller, 2 - roller shaft, 3 - brush bristles, 4 - spiral shaft, 5 - spray device. Detailed Implementation

[0026] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described in more detail. While preferred embodiments of the present invention are described below, it should be understood that the invention can be implemented in various forms and should not be limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Where specific techniques or conditions are not specified in the embodiments, they are performed in accordance with techniques or conditions described in the literature in the art or according to the product instructions. Reagents or instruments whose manufacturers are not specified are all commercially available conventional products. In the following embodiments, unless otherwise specified, "%" refers to weight percentage.

[0027] It should be noted that the oysters used in the following examples and comparative examples are all fresh, live oysters harvested from the same sea area, without any size screening; the blanching machine, cooling machine, and other equipment are all commercially available standard models; only the novel oyster-specific cleaning machine was created, and the materials used are standard. For details, please refer to...Figure 2 and Figure 3 The new oyster-specific cleaning machine includes a U-shaped drum 1, with multiple rollers 2 installed around the drum 1, each roller being covered with brush filaments 3; a spiral shaft 4 is installed at the center of the drum 1 for automatic feeding and discharging; and a spraying device 5 is installed above the drum of the new oyster-specific cleaning machine.

[0028] It should be noted that, Figure 2 The illustration shows a new type of oyster-specific cleaning machine with two parallel rollers. Using two parallel rollers increases production efficiency compared to a single roller, and does not constitute a limitation on the number of rollers. In actual use, one, three, or more rollers can be used depending on production needs.

[0029] The working principle of the new oyster cleaning machine is as follows: Oysters enter the U-shaped drum 1 through the feed inlet on one side of the equipment. The roller 2 rotates under the drive of the drive device, while the spiral shaft 4 rotates, causing the oysters to tumble and move forward inside the drum 1. The spray device 5 installed above the drum 1 sprays clean water, which, together with the brush filaments 3 on the roller 2, rubs and cleans the surface of the oysters. At the same time, the oysters collide with each other, thereby removing mud and attached substances. After a certain period of time, the oysters open their shells at the closed position, with an amplitude of 1~5mm. After processing, the oysters are discharged from the discharge port on the other side of the equipment under the push of the spiral shaft 4, realizing automatic feeding and discharging.

[0030] In the examples and comparative examples, the manual meat extraction rate is measured by the weight of drained oyster meat obtained per hour by a single oyster shucker, and the shell-opening rate is the proportion of processed oysters to the total number of processed oysters.

[0031] Comparative Example 1 (Traditional manual shelling and meat extraction, without any pretreatment) Take 500 kg of fresh oysters and distribute them directly to the oyster shuckers without any processing. The shuckers hold oyster shuckers and insert them directly into the oyster shells. They use the blade to separate the adductor muscle from the oyster shell, then pry open the shells, remove the meat, drain it, cool it, and package it to obtain oyster meat.

[0032] In this comparative study, on-site statistics showed that the manual meat extraction rate was 3.85 kg / h, the natural shell-opening rate of oysters with an opening range of 1-5 mm was less than 10%, and the natural shell-opening rate of oysters with an opening range of 5-20 mm was less than 5%. In addition, some oyster meat was torn during the shell-opening process, resulting in poor integrity, and the workers' hands showed obvious fatigue.

[0033] Comparative Example 2 (only drum cleaning treatment, without low-temperature blanching and shell opening step) Take 500 kg of fresh oysters and process them according to the following steps: S1. Remove the strings: Remove the strings from the fresh oysters to obtain single oysters that are not stuck together; S2. Tumbler cleaning: Each oyster is fed into a new type of oyster cleaning machine with a tumbler, where the oysters rub and collide with each other for 8 minutes to clean them, resulting in clean oysters with clean surfaces and open shells. S3. Manual meat extraction: The oysters are manually pried open from the shell opening point of the cleaned oysters, the oyster meat is removed, drained, cooled, and packaged to obtain oyster meat.

[0034] In this comparative example, only drum cleaning was performed, without low-temperature blanching for shell opening. The shell opening rate for oysters with a shell opening range of 1-5 mm was 100%, while the opening rate for oysters with a shell opening range of 5-20 mm was only 23%. The manual meat extraction rate was 4.90 kg / h, which is 27% higher than the manual meat extraction rate for oysters in Comparative Example 1 (3.85 kg / h). However, due to the lack of the low-temperature blanching step, the adductor muscle did not undergo micro-degeneration, and the adhesion strength remained high. Workers still needed a certain amount of force to open the shells, resulting in limited efficiency improvement. Furthermore, some oysters with a smaller shell opening range were still difficult to pry open quickly.

[0035] Comparative Example 3 (no drum cleaning process, only low-temperature rinsing and shell opening process) Take 500 kg of fresh oysters and process them according to the following steps: S1. Remove the strings: Remove the strings from the fresh oysters to obtain single oysters that are not stuck together; S2. Low-temperature blanching and opening: Single oysters are transported to a blanching machine, where they are completely immersed in a 3.5% brine solution at 55°C for 8 minutes to obtain opened oysters. S3. Cooling: The oysters are transferred to a cooling machine and cooled until the center temperature of the oyster meat is below 30°C to obtain cooled oysters; S4. Manual meat extraction: The oysters are manually pried open from the opening of the cooled oysters, the oyster meat is removed, drained, cooled, and packaged to obtain oyster meat.

[0036] In this comparative example, without the drum cleaning step, only low-temperature blanching and shell-opening treatment was performed. The shell-opening rate of oysters with an opening range of 5-20mm was 40%, and the manual meat extraction rate was 5.21kg / h, which is only 35% higher than the manual meat extraction rate of oysters in Comparative Example 1 (3.85kg / h). Due to the lack of the 1-5mm channels created by the drum cleaning process of the oyster washing machine, the blanching solution could not penetrate into the oyster and make sufficient contact with the adductor muscle. The adductor muscle was not sufficiently degenerated, and most oysters remained in a tightly closed state, making shell opening difficult and resulting in no significant improvement in efficiency.

[0037] Example 1 Take 500 kg of fresh oysters and process them according to the following steps: S1. Remove the strings: Remove the strings from the fresh oysters to obtain single oysters that are not stuck together; S2. Tumbler cleaning: Each oyster is fed into a new type of oyster cleaning machine with a drum, where the oysters rub and collide with each other for 8 minutes to clean them, resulting in clean oysters with a clean surface and a shell opening range of 1-5mm. S3. Low-temperature blanching and shell opening: The cleaned oysters are transported to a blanching machine, where they are completely immersed in a 3.5% brine solution at 55°C for 8 minutes, resulting in oysters with a shell opening range of 5-20 mm. S4. Cooling: The oysters are transferred to a cooling machine and cooled until the center temperature of the oyster meat is below 30°C to obtain cooled oysters; S5. Manual Meat Extraction: The oysters are manually pried open from the shell opening point of the cooled oysters to remove the oyster meat, drain it, cool it down, and package it to obtain factory-produced opened oyster meat. Specifically, draining is done by using an inclined grid drainage platform to drain the water seeping out of the oyster meat. Cooling involves packing the drained oyster meat into food-grade packaging bags, weighing them, sealing them, pre-cooling them with an ice-water mixture, and then transferring them to a -5℃ to -10℃ freezer for 4 to 6 hours.

[0038] In this embodiment, oysters were treated with a combination of drum cleaning by a novel oyster-specific cleaning machine and low-temperature blanching in a blanching machine to open the shells. The shell-opening rate of oysters with an opening range of 5-20 mm was 99%, and the manual meat extraction rate was 8.01 kg / h, which is 108% higher than the manual meat extraction rate of oysters in Comparative Example 1 (3.85 kg / h). The drum cleaning treatment created a shell-opening effect with an opening range of 1-5 mm, providing a rapid penetration channel for the blanching solution. After the blanching solution entered the oyster shell, it caused slight denaturation of the adductor muscle protein, significantly reducing the adhesion strength, and expanding the shell-opening range to 5-20 mm. Workers could open the shells effortlessly, only needing to gently pry them open. The oyster meat remained intact and undamaged, and its aroma and quality were indistinguishable from fresh oyster meat. Worker hand fatigue was greatly reduced.

[0039] Example 2 Take 500 kg of fresh oysters and process them according to the following steps: S1. Remove the strings: Remove the strings from the fresh oysters to obtain single oysters that are not stuck together; S2. Tumbler cleaning: Each oyster is fed into a new type of oyster cleaning machine with a tumbler, where the oysters rub and collide with each other for 3 minutes to clean them, resulting in clean oysters with a clean surface and a shell opening range of 1-5mm. S3. Low-temperature blanching and shell opening: The cleaned oysters are transported to a blanching machine, where they are completely immersed in a 3.5% brine solution at 60°C for 5 minutes, resulting in oysters with a shell opening range of 5-20 mm. S4. Cooling: The oysters are transferred to a cooling machine and cooled until the center temperature of the oyster meat is below 30°C to obtain cooled oysters; S5. Manual meat extraction: The oysters are manually pried open from the opening point of the cooled oysters, the oyster meat is extracted, drained, cooled, and packaged to obtain factory-produced opened oyster meat.

[0040] In this embodiment, the oysters were treated by a combination of drum cleaning with a new type of oyster-specific cleaning machine and low-temperature blanching with a blanching machine to open the shells. The shell opening rate of the oysters with an opening range of 5-20mm was 97%, and the manual meat extraction rate was 7.43kg / h, which is 93% higher than the manual meat extraction rate of oysters in Comparative Example 1 (3.85kg / h).

[0041] Example 3 Take 500 kg of fresh oysters and process them according to the following steps: S1. Remove the strings: Remove the strings from the fresh oysters to obtain single oysters that are not stuck together; S2. Tumbler cleaning: Each oyster is fed into a new type of oyster cleaning machine with a tumbler, where the oysters rub and collide with each other for 5 minutes to clean them, resulting in clean oysters with a clean surface and a shell opening range of 1-5mm. S3. Low-temperature blanching and shell opening: The cleaned oysters are transported to a blanching machine, where they are completely immersed in a 3.5% brine solution at 50°C for 10 minutes, resulting in oysters with a shell opening range of 5-20 mm. S4. Cooling: The oysters are transferred to a cooling machine and cooled until the center temperature of the oyster meat is below 30°C to obtain cooled oysters; S5. Manual meat extraction: The oysters are manually pried open from the opening point of the cooled oysters, the oyster meat is extracted, drained, cooled, and packaged to obtain factory-produced opened oyster meat.

[0042] In this embodiment, the oysters were treated by a combination of drum cleaning with a new type of oyster-specific cleaning machine and low-temperature blanching with a blanching machine to open the shells. The shell opening rate of the oysters with an opening range of 5-20mm was 95%, and the manual meat extraction rate was 7.16kg / h, which is 86% higher than the manual meat extraction rate of oysters in Comparative Example 1 (3.85kg / h).

[0043] Example 4 Take 500 kg of fresh oysters and process them according to the following steps: S1. Remove the strings: Remove the strings from the fresh oysters to obtain single oysters that are not stuck together; S2. Tumbler cleaning: Single oysters are fed into a new type of oyster-specific cleaning machine (as shown in Figure 2). The drum of this new type of oyster-specific cleaning machine is U-shaped, with rollers installed around the drum. Each roller is covered with brush bristles. A spiral shaft is installed at the center of the drum. A water spraying network (spraying device) is installed 1.5 meters above the drum. The water spraying network has multiple spray holes. The rotation speed of the spiral shaft is controlled so that the oyster stays in the drum for 3 minutes. Through the rotation of the rollers and the drive of the central spiral shaft, the oysters rub and collide with each other. At the same time, the spraying device sprays clean water to clean them, resulting in clean oysters with a clean surface and an opening range of 1~5mm. S3. Low-temperature blanching and shell opening: The cleaned oysters are transported to the blanching machine and completely immersed in a 3.5% brine solution at 55℃ for 8 minutes. Hot water enters the oyster through a 1-5mm opening and contacts the adductor muscle, causing slight denaturation of the adductor muscle protein, resulting in oysters with an opening range of 5-20mm. S4. Cooling: The oysters are conveyed to a cooling machine with flat, convex and concave rollers and brush bristles. The water flow of the cooling machine is adjusted so that the oysters are cooled by the sprayed cold water while they are tumbling forward. The oysters are discharged when the temperature at the center of the meat drops below 30°C to obtain cooled oysters. S5. Manual meat extraction: Cooled oysters are transported to the oyster shuckers, who use oyster shuckers to further pry open the oyster shells from the opening point, extract the oyster meat, drain, cool, and package it to obtain factory-produced oyster meat.

[0044] In this embodiment, the oysters were treated by a combination of drum cleaning with a new type of oyster-specific cleaning machine and low-temperature blanching with a blanching machine to open the shells. The shell opening rate of the oysters with an opening range of 5-20mm was 95%, and the manual meat extraction rate was 7.67kg / h, which is 99% higher than the manual meat extraction rate of oysters in Comparative Example 1 (3.85kg / h).

[0045] The effects of the above embodiments and comparative examples are summarized below, see Table 1.

[0046] Table 1. Meat extraction rate under different implementation methods

[0047] Test Example 1 (1) Meat yield test Weigh the oyster raw materials and drained oyster meat in Comparative Example 1 and Example 1 respectively, and calculate the meat yield: X

[0048] X —Meat yield, unit: % m 1 — Mass of oyster raw materials, unit: kg m 2—Weight of drained oyster meat, unit: kg (2) Oyster meat cooking test Twelve oyster meat samples, each weighing 10.0g, were taken from Comparative Example 1 and Example 1, drained, and laid flat on a smooth silicone mat with the adductor muscle facing upwards and the skirt naturally unfolded. Two compression TPA modes tests were performed on the whole oyster meat using a P / 200 probe. The test conditions were: pre-test speed 1 mm / s, test speed 1 mm / s, post-test speed 1 mm / s, deformation 15%, dwell time 3 s, trigger value 5g. Each oyster meat sample was measured once, and the average hardness and elasticity of the 12 oyster meat samples were recorded. (Another 12 oyster meat samples, each weighing 10.0g, from Comparative Example 1 were boiled in boiling water for 6 minutes and immediately cooled with cold water to serve as fully cooked samples for texture testing.) The rate of change in oyster meat texture was calculated.

[0049]

[0050] Y 1 — Change rate of oyster meat firmness, unit: % H 1 – Average hardness of 12 oyster meats in Comparative Example 1, unit: N H 2—The average hardness of the 12 oyster meats in Example 1, in N. Y 2—Oyster meat elasticity change rate, unit: % S 1 – Average elasticity of 12 oyster meat grains in Comparative Example 1 S 2—The average elasticity of 12 oyster meat grains in Example 1 (3) Test of volatile basic nitrogen content in oyster meat: Take 200g of oyster meat produced in Comparative Example 1 and Example 1 respectively, mince it into a homogenate, and place 20.000g of the homogenate sample in a stoppered conical flask. Accurately add 100.0mL of water, shake occasionally to disperse the sample evenly, and filter after 30 minutes. Add 10mL of 20g / L boric acid solution and 5 drops of mixed indicator solution (1g / L methyl red ethanol solution: 1g / L bromocresol green ethanol solution = 1:5) to the receiving flask of the semi-micro nitrogen determination distillation apparatus. Insert the lower end of the condenser below the liquid surface, accurately pipette 10.0mL of filtrate, and pour it into the reaction chamber through a small glass beaker. Wash the small glass beaker with 10mL of water and let it flow into the reaction chamber, then seal it with a rod-shaped glass stopper. Then pour 5mL of 10g / L magnesium oxide suspension into the reaction chamber, immediately seal the glass stopper, and add water to the small glass beaker to prevent air leakage. Clamp the screw clamp and start distillation. After distilling for 5 minutes, move the receiving flask until the liquid level is below the bottom of the condenser, and distill for another 1 minute. Then rinse the outside of the bottom of the condenser with a small amount of water and remove the receiving flask. Titrate with 0.0100 mol / L hydrochloric acid standard solution until a purple-red color is obtained. Perform a blank experiment simultaneously.

[0051] calculate: Z

[0052] Z —Content of volatile basic nitrogen in the sample, unit: mg / 100g V 1 — Volume of hydrochloric acid standard titration solution consumed in the test sample, unit: mL V 2—Volume of standard hydrochloric acid titration solution consumed in the blank experiment, unit: mL c —Concentration of the hydrochloric acid standard titration solution, unit: mol / L 14——Titration of 1.0 mL of standard hydrochloric acid solution ( c =1.000 mol / L) equivalent to the mass of nitrogen, unit: g / mol m —Sample mass, unit: g V —Accurately measure the volume of the filtrate, in mL. V 0 — Total volume of sample solution, unit: mL 100 — Conversion factor for converting the calculation result to mg / 100g The test results are shown in Table 2.

[0053] (4) Test of amino acid nitrogen content in oyster meat: Take 200g of oyster meat produced in Comparative Example 1 and Example 1 respectively, mince it into a homogenate, then take 50g of the homogenate and grind it rapidly in a mortar and pestle within 10 minutes until no visible particles are present. Store the homogenate in a ground glass bottle for later use. Weigh 5.0g of the well-stirred ground sample into a weighing bottle of known weight, wash it several times with 50mL of distilled water at approximately 80℃ into a 100mL beaker, cool it, and then transfer it to a 100mL volumetric flask. Wash the beaker several times with a small amount of water, combine the washings with the volumetric flask, add water to the mark, mix well, and filter. Pipette 10.0mL of the filtrate into a 200mL beaker, add 60mL of water, and titrate with 0.050mol / L sodium hydroxide standard solution until the pH meter indicates 8.2. Record the volume of sodium hydroxide standard titration solution consumed. Add 10.0mL of 36% formaldehyde solution and mix well. Continue titrating with standard sodium hydroxide solution until the pH reaches 9.2, and record the volume of standard sodium hydroxide solution consumed. Take 80 mL of water, first adjust the pH to 8.2 with standard sodium hydroxide solution, then add 10.0 mL of 36% formaldehyde solution, and titrate with standard sodium hydroxide solution until the pH reaches 9.2. Perform a blank test.

[0054] calculate: K

[0055] K —The content of amino acid nitrogen in the sample, in g / 100g P 1 — The volume of sodium hydroxide standard titration solution consumed after adding formaldehyde to the sample diluent, in mL. P 2—Volume of sodium hydroxide standard titration solution consumed after adding formaldehyde in the blank experiment, unit: mL a —Concentration of sodium hydroxide standard titration solution, unit: mol / L 0.014 — The mass of nitrogen equivalent to titrating 1.0 mL of sodium hydroxide standard titrant (c = 1.000 mol / L), in g. m —Sample mass, unit: g P 3 — Volume of sample diluent used, unit: mL P 4—The final volume of the sample diluent, in mL. 100 – Unit conversion factor The test results are shown in Table 2.

[0056] (5) Protein content test: Take 200g of oyster meat produced in Comparative Example 1 and Example 1 respectively, mince it into a homogenate, and transfer 2.000g of the homogenate sample into a dry 250mL nitrogen determination flask. Add 0.4g of copper sulfate (CuSO4·5H2O), 6g of potassium sulfate, and 20mL of sulfuric acid with a concentration ≥98%. Gently shake the flask and place a small funnel at the mouth of the flask. Place the flask at a 45° angle on a perforated asbestos mesh. Heat slowly until the contents are completely carbonized and the foaming stops completely. Increase the heat and keep the liquid in the flask at a gentle boil until the liquid turns blue-green and becomes clear and transparent. Continue heating for 0.5h~1h. Remove the nitrogen determination flask and cool it to room temperature. Carefully add 20mL of water and transfer all the contents to a 100mL volumetric flask. Wash the inner wall of the nitrogen determination flask with a small amount of water, add the washings to the volumetric flask, and add water to the mark. Mix well and set aside. Simultaneously, perform a blank self-test.

[0057] Fill the steam generator of the nitrogen determination distillation apparatus to 2 / 3 capacity with water, add several glass beads, a few drops of 1 g / L methyl red ethanol solution, and a few milliliters of sulfuric acid until the solution turns red. To maintain the acidity of the water, heat the water in the steam generator to a boil and keep it boiling. Add 10.0 mL of 20 g / L boric acid solution and 3-4 drops of mixed indicator (1 g / L methyl red ethanol solution: 1 g / L bromocresol green ethanol solution = 1:5) to the receiving flask, and insert the lower end of the condenser below the liquid surface. Based on the nitrogen content in the sample, accurately pipette 2.0 mL of the sample treatment solution into the reaction chamber through a small glass beaker. Wash the small glass beaker with 10 mL of water and allow it to flow into the reaction chamber, then tightly stopper it with a rod-shaped glass stopper. Pour 10.0 mL of 400 g / L sodium hydroxide solution into the small glass beaker, lift the glass stopper to allow it to slowly flow into the reaction chamber, immediately tighten the glass stopper, and water seal. Clamp the screw clamp and begin distillation. After distilling for 15 minutes, move the receiving flask until the liquid level is above the lower end of the condenser. Distill for another 1 minute until the distillate is neutral as measured by pH paper. Rinse the outside of the lower end of the condenser with a small amount of water and remove the receiving flask. Titrate with 0.10 mol / L hydrochloric acid standard solution as soon as possible until a light grayish-red color is reached.

[0058] calculate: W

[0059] W —Protein content in the sample, unit: g / 100g Q 1 — Volume of hydrochloric acid standard titration solution consumed by the sample processing solution, unit: mL Q 2—Volume of standard hydrochloric acid titration solution consumed in the blank experiment, unit: mL c —Concentration of the hydrochloric acid standard titration solution, unit: mol / L 0.014 — Titration of 1.0 mL of standard hydrochloric acid solution ( c =1.000 mol / L) equivalent to the mass of nitrogen, unit: g / mmol m —Sample mass, unit: g Q 3 — Volume of digestive fluid taken, unit: mL Q 4 — The final volume of the digestion solution, in mL. 6.25 — Protein conversion factor 100 – Unit conversion factor The test results are shown in Table 2.

[0060] Table 2. Tests on oyster meat yield, cooking time, freshness, and nutrient content under different implementation methods.

[0061] As can be seen from Table 2, the volatile basic nitrogen content in the oyster meat of Comparative Example 1 is 5.43 mg / 100g, while that in Example 1 is 6.02 mg / 100g. When the volatile basic nitrogen content is ≤10 mg / 100g, it indicates that the oyster meat has excellent freshness. Therefore, the oyster meat produced in Example 1 has excellent freshness.

[0062] Compared with the raw oyster meat in Comparative Example 1, the oyster meat in Example 1 showed a change rate of 17.09% in hardness and 4.41% in elasticity, both less than 10% of the change rate of fully cooked oyster meat (285.71% for hardness and 47.69% for elasticity). This indicates that the texture of the oyster meat produced in Example 1 is very similar to that of raw oyster meat, with only slight denaturation and a degree of cooking less than 10%.

[0063] Comparative Example 1 showed that the oyster meat yield was 10.54%, the amino acid nitrogen content was 0.23 g / 100 g, and the protein content was 10.7 g / 100 g. In Example 1, the yields were 10.25%, 0.22 g / 100 g, and 10.5 g / 100 g, indicating that the oyster meat produced in Example 1 did not show any significant loss in terms of meat yield, umami substances, or nutrients.

[0064] Therefore, the innovative oyster factory-scale high-efficiency oyster shell opening and meat extraction technology of this invention not only significantly improves the oyster shell opening and meat extraction rate, but also ensures the freshness and integrity of the oyster meat, and preserves the umami substances and nutrients of the oyster meat.

[0065] Application Example 1 (Oyster Sauce) Take 10 kg of oyster meat produced in Example 1, add 40 kg of drinking water, and simmer in a cooker at 90°C for 60 minutes with constant stirring to obtain cooking liquid. Then filter the cooking liquid through 80-mesh gauze to obtain filtrate. Simmer the filtrate in a cooker over low heat to concentrate it to 30°Bx, which is the concentrated oyster juice prepared by the cooking method. After bottling the concentrated oyster juice, sterilize it at 121°C for 15 minutes to obtain a 100% pure oyster juice product that can be used directly for cooking.

[0066] Application Example 2 (Oyster Sauce) Take 200g of concentrated oyster sauce produced in Application Example 1, mix it with 120g of brewed soy sauce, and pass it through 80-mesh gauze to obtain filtrate 1; weigh 45g of white sugar, 38g of edible salt and 6g of yeast extract, and dissolve them together in 100g of 60℃ hot water, and pass it through 80-mesh gauze to obtain filtrate 2; mix 20g of starch and 25g of wheat flour, add 120g of 45℃ warm water and stir until there are no granules, and pass it through 80-mesh gauze to obtain filtrate 3; weigh 326g of drinking water, add it to filtrate 1 and mix well, then add filtrate 2 and mix well, and finally add filtrate 3 while stirring, and stir until there are no granules and no separation to obtain a mixture. Heat the mixture in a water bath to 90℃ while stirring until the starch is completely gelatinized, then homogenize it with a homogenizer, fill it and sterilize it at 85℃ for 30 minutes to obtain oyster sauce.

[0067] Application Example 3 (Oyster Powder) Take 10 kg of oyster meat produced in Example 2, crush it into a homogenate using a crusher, add it to an enzymatic hydrolysis tank, heat it to 55°C, add 50 g of oyster powder-specific hydrolytic enzyme, mix well, and maintain the temperature at 55°C for 2 hours to obtain an enzymatic hydrolysate. Filter the enzymatic hydrolysate through 200-mesh gauze, add the filtrate to a vacuum concentration tank, and concentrate it to 15°Bx under vacuum at 60°C to obtain a concentrated solution. Then, spray dry the concentrated solution at 180°C to make powder, and package it to obtain edible oyster powder.

[0068] Application Example 4 (Oyster Peptide) Take 10 kg of oyster meat produced in Example 3, crush it into a homogenate using a crusher, add it to an enzymatic hydrolysis tank, heat it to 55°C, add 100 g of oyster peptide-specific hydrolytic enzyme, mix well, and maintain the temperature at 55°C for 2 hours to obtain an enzymatic hydrolysate. Centrifuge the enzymatic hydrolysate at 10,000 rpm for 30 minutes to obtain a supernatant. Coarsely filter the supernatant through a 200-mesh filter cloth to obtain a filtrate. Ultrafilter the filtrate using an ultrafiltration membrane separation device with a molecular weight cutoff of 3000 Da to obtain a permeate. Concentrate the permeate to 15°Bx under reduced pressure at 60°C using a vacuum concentration tank to obtain a concentrate. Spray dry the concentrate at 180°C to obtain powder, and package it to obtain oyster peptides.

[0069] Application Example 5 (Frozen Oyster Meat) Take 10 kg of oyster meat produced in Example 4, wash it twice with drinking water at 0-4℃ for 2 minutes each time, soak it in 0.3% saline solution at 0-4℃ for 3 minutes, rinse it with sterile water at 0-4℃, drain the surface water, spread the oyster meat individually on a quick-freezing mesh belt, freeze it at -35℃ for 20 minutes, and immediately immerse the quick-frozen oyster meat completely in sterile water at 0-4℃ for 5 seconds, drain it, let it stand in a pre-cooling environment at 0-4℃ for 5 minutes, immerse it again in sterile water at 0-4℃ for 3 seconds, drain it, let it stand in a pre-cooling environment at 0-4℃ for 3 minutes, and quickly pack it in a packaging room at -10℃ to -5℃ to obtain frozen oyster meat, and store it in a freezer at -18℃.

[0070] Application Example 6 (Pre-made Oyster Dish: Oyster Omelet) Take 1000g of oyster meat produced in Example 1, wash it twice with drinking water at 0-4℃ for 2 minutes each time, soak it in 0.3% saline solution at 0-4℃ for 3 minutes, rinse it with sterile water at 0-4℃, and drain the surface water to obtain drained oyster meat. Take 400g of sweet potato starch, add 600g of drinking water and stir until there are no lumps, let it stand for 10 minutes to obtain sweet potato starch slurry. Take 5g of edible salt, 20mL of cooking wine and 1g of white pepper powder, mix well and add it to the oyster meat and mix well. Then add the sweet potato starch slurry, 100g of chopped green onions and 100g of minced garlic leaves, and carefully stir evenly to obtain a mixed slurry. Set the continuous teppanyaki grill to 180℃. Coat the frying pan with a layer of cooking oil, pour in the mixed batter, and spread it into a thin pancake with a diameter of 18cm and a thickness of 0.8cm. Fry until the edges are golden brown, pour in 50g of egg liquid, spread it evenly, and flip it over after the egg liquid has slightly solidified. Fry for another minute, then quickly remove it and cool it in a cold air chamber at 0~4℃ until the center temperature is below 10℃. Place it in a tray and flash freeze at -35℃ for 25 minutes. Package it to obtain the oyster omelet pre-cooked dish, and store it in a freezer at -18℃.

[0071] The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above. However, the present invention is not limited to the specific details in the above embodiments. Within the scope of the technical concept of the present invention, various simple modifications can be made to the technical solution of the present invention, and these simple modifications all fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0072] It should also be noted that the various specific technical features described in the above embodiments can be combined in any suitable manner without contradiction. To avoid unnecessary repetition, the present invention will not describe the various possible combinations separately.

[0073] Furthermore, various different embodiments of the present invention can be combined in any way, as long as they do not violate the spirit of the present invention, they should also be regarded as the content disclosed by the present invention.

Claims

1. A highly efficient, industrialized method for opening fresh oyster meat, characterized in that: Includes the following steps: S1. Remove the strings: Remove the strings from the fresh oysters to obtain single oysters that are not stuck together; S2. Drum cleaning: The single oyster is fed into a new type of oyster cleaning machine equipped with a drum, and the oysters are cleaned by rubbing and colliding with each other for 3-8 minutes to obtain clean oysters with a clean surface and a shell opening range of 1-5mm; the new type of oyster cleaning machine includes a drum, and multiple rollers are installed around the drum, with each roller surface covered with brush bristles; a spray device is installed above the new type of oyster cleaning machine; S3. Low-temperature blanching and shell opening: The cleaned oysters are transported to a blanching machine, where they are completely immersed in a blanching solution at 50-60°C for 5-10 minutes to obtain oysters with a shell opening range of 5-20 mm. S4. Cooling: The opened oysters are transferred to a cooling machine and cooled until the center temperature of the oyster meat is below 30°C to obtain cooled oysters; S5. Manual meat extraction: The oyster is manually pried open from the opening of the cooled oyster, the oyster meat is removed, drained, cooled, and packaged to obtain fresh, factory-produced oyster meat.

2. The efficient, industrialized method for opening fresh oyster meat according to claim 1, characterized in that: The roller is U-shaped; the spraying device includes a network of spray pipes consisting of multiple spray pipes installed 1-2 meters above the roller, with multiple spray holes on the surface of the spray pipes; the brush bristles on the roller surface are nylon or metal bristles; after being cleaned by the roller for 3-8 minutes, 100% of the oysters have an opening range of 1-5 mm.

3. The efficient, factory-scale shell-opening method for fresh oyster meat according to claim 2, characterized in that: The scalding solution in S3 is a brine solution with a mass concentration of 3-4%. The oysters are completely immersed in the scalding solution at 50-60°C for 5-8 minutes, resulting in 95-99% of the oysters having an opening diameter of 5-20 mm.

4. A method for efficient, industrialized oyster shell opening according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that: The cooler in S4 is filled with flat, uneven rollers with brush filaments attached. The oysters tumble and move forward inside the cooler while being cooled by sprayed water.

5. A method for efficient, industrialized oyster shell opening according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that: The draining process in S5 involves draining the water seeping out of the oyster meat through an inclined grid draining platform. The cooling process includes packing the drained oyster meat into food-grade packaging bags, weighing them, sealing them, pre-cooling them with an ice-water mixture, and then transferring them to a -5℃ to -10℃ freezer for 4 to 6 hours.

6. A method for efficient, industrialized oyster shell opening according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that: Compared to oyster shuckers directly prying open unprocessed fresh oysters with oyster shuckers using oyster shuckers by hand, the manual meat extraction rate in S5 is increased by more than 86%.

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