Food composition and molded food using the same

Abstract

To provide a food composition useful as a raw material of a molded food which is molded using a three-dimensional molding technology, and a high quality molded food.SOLUTION: A food composition includes paste of a food material, where in a predetermined compression / restoration test, an adhesion distance is 6 mm or longer and rigidity is 8.0×104 N / m2 or lower. The food material is preferably a vegetable. The water content is preferably 50-95 mass%. And the composition preferably contains one or more kinds of modifier selected from cellulose nanofibers, corn starch, and processed starch. A molded food includes a molded product produced from the food composition by a three-dimensional molding apparatus.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a food composition which is mainly composed of a paste of a food material and is useful as a raw material for shaped foods. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, processed foods using ground vegetables are known. Patent Document 1 describes a vegetable paste, which is one type of such processed food. The vegetable paste described in Patent Document 1 is obtained by concentrating ground vegetables by freeze-drying concentration to obtain a concentrated vegetable paste, and adding dried powders of vegetables, starches, or polysaccharides to the concentrated vegetable paste. The vegetable paste described in Patent Document 1 is eaten as is, or reconstituted and eaten as vegetable juice or vegetable soup, and is not intended to be used as a raw material for shaped foods.

[0003] Patent Document 2 describes a shaped vegetable product. The shaped vegetable product described in Patent Document 2 is obtained by adding a coagulant such as xanthan gum and, if necessary, seasonings to a high-temperature paste obtained by steaming vegetables, and then cooling and solidifying the paste in a mold, and is said to have good shape stability.

[0004] Patent Document 3 describes a food for people with difficulty chewing that is resistant to refrigeration and freezing and can be cooked by heating, which is obtained by mixing a food paste with curdlan, modified starch and water in an appropriate amount, filling a container and heating it to 80°C or higher. The food paste is obtained by finely grinding food ingredients such as vegetables after they are either raw or heated. Patent Document 3 also describes that the hardness of the food for people with difficulty chewing at a product temperature of 20°C, measured under specified conditions using a compressive stress measuring device such as a texture analyzer, is 3000N / m 2 More than 50000N / m 2 It is described that the following is preferable (Patent Document 3, paragraph

[0018] ).

[0005] Patent Document 4 describes a technology related to the creation of food products using a 3D printer, specifically, the use of vegetable paste as the content of the 3D printer cartridge, and the addition of ingredients to the paste to modify its physical properties or add functionality, and gives examples of such ingredients as thickening stabilizers, calcium salts, etc.

[0006] Patent Document 5 describes a food composition with fluidity and self-shape retention that contains a gelling agent such as sodium alginate, curdlan, gellan gum, etc., water, a shape retaining agent such as a thickening polysaccharide, dietary fiber, protein, etc., and food ingredients such as vegetable paste, vegetable powder, etc. The food composition described in Patent Document 5 is said to be suitable as a nursing care food because it has a hardness that can be crushed with the tongue. A specific example of this is a food composition having a hardness of 2.0×10 according to the Consumer Affairs Agency's "Criteria for Approval of Labeling of Foods for People with Dysphagia." 4 N / m 2 Certain examples are described below. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] JP 2018-40 A [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 10-295316 [Patent Document 3] International Publication No. 2017-017953 [Patent Document 4] Patent Publication No. 2022-47485 [Patent Document 5] JP 2022-100730 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] In recent years, attempts to apply 3D printing technology to food have been actively made, and accordingly, a technology for three-dimensionally modeling food using a 3D printer, such as the technology described in Patent Document 4, has been proposed. By applying 3D printing technology to food, it is expected that food waste, which has become a problem in recent years, can be reduced. For example, non-standard vegetables have traditionally been disposed of before being sold on the market, but by crushing them and modeling them into the desired shape using a 3D printer, they can be regenerated as a value-added modeled food. However, the level of required characteristics for such modeled foods is increasing year by year, and the reality is that the 3D printing technology for food proposed so far has not been able to fully meet the demands.

[0009] An object of the present invention is to provide a food composition that is useful as a raw material for shaped foods formed using three-dimensional modeling technology. Another object of the present invention is to provide a high-quality shaped food product. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] The present invention contains a paste of a food material, and in the compression and recovery test described below, the adhesion distance is 6 mm or more and the hardness is 8.0 × 10 4 N / m 2 The food composition is as follows:

[0011] The present invention also relates to a shaped food product comprising an object shaped by a three-dimensional modeling device of the food composition of the present invention. Effect of the Invention

[0012] According to the present invention, a food composition is provided that is useful as a raw material for shaped foods formed using three-dimensional modeling techniques such as 3D printing technology. The shaped food product of the present invention can be easily produced by three-dimensional modeling using a three-dimensional modeling device such as a 3D printer, and is of high quality with excellent appearance and shape retention. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a graph showing an example of a stress-distance traveled diagram obtained in a compression-recovery test of a food composition. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] The food composition of the present invention contains a paste of a food material. The food material paste used in the present invention is obtained by grinding a food material, and typically has particles of solid matter of the food material suspended in a liquid containing water derived from the food material, and has fluidity at room temperature and normal pressure (ambient temperature 20°C, 1 atm). That is, the food composition of the present invention typically contains particles of solid matter of the food material and water, and is in a paste form at room temperature and normal pressure.

[0015] The food material used in the present invention may be any edible object (food) that animals (including humans) need to maintain life and that can be crushed, such as vegetables, seafood, meat, eggs, and dairy products. The food composition of the present invention may contain one type of food material or two or more types of food materials. The food material used in the present invention may be raw, or may be refrigerated, frozen or heat treated.

[0016] An example of a suitable food material is vegetables. Examples of vegetable food materials include root vegetables such as daikon radish, carrots, potatoes, taro, turnips, burdock, lotus root, and mountain yam; leafy vegetables such as Chinese cabbage, cabbage, spinach, lettuce, green onions, onions, komatsuna, bok choy, butterbur, mitsuba, shungiku, mizuna, celery, asparagus, cauliflower, broccoli, chives, and garlic; fruit vegetables such as cucumbers, eggplants, tomatoes, bell peppers, pumpkins, sweet corn, green beans, snow peas, green peas, broad beans, and green soybeans; spicy vegetables such as ginger; fruit vegetables such as strawberries, melons, and watermelons; and mushrooms such as shiitake mushrooms, maitake mushrooms, matsutake mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, eringi mushrooms, and buna-shimeji mushrooms. The food composition of the present invention may contain paste of one or more of these vegetables.

[0017] In the compression and recovery test described below, the food composition of the present invention has an adhesion distance of 6 mm or more and a hardness of 8.0×10 4 N / m 2 It is characterized in that: Compression and recovery test: Using a rheometer equipped with a cylindrical resin plunger 20 mm in diameter and 8 mm in height, the plunger is plunged into a container filled with a sample at a product temperature of 20±2°C from a specified waiting position above the sample at a speed of 10 mm / sec, and when the distance between the plunger and the bottom of the container becomes 5 mm, the plunger is retracted in the opposite direction to the plunge direction at a speed of 10 mm / sec to return to the waiting position. The adhesion distance and hardness of the sample are calculated from the stress-strain curve obtained by carrying out such plunge-retraction movement of the plunger twice.

[0018] Regarding the compression and recovery test, this test is conducted in accordance with the Consumer Affairs Agency's "Standards for Labeling Approval of Foods for People with Dysphagia" (Internet: http: / / www.consumeraffairs.go.jp / ) "Testing Methods for Foods for People with Dysphagia (including Thickening Foods)" (Internet: http: / / www.consumeraffairs.go.jp / )<URL: https: / / www.jhnfa.org / tokuhou279.pdf> ) and can be carried out in accordance with such test methods. As the rheometer, for example, "Creep Meter RE2-33005C" manufactured by Yamaden Corporation can be used. The container in which the sample (food composition) is filled may be a cylindrical container with an internal shape of 40 mm in diameter and 15 mm in height. The height of the sample filled in the container is 15 mm.

[0019] FIG. 1 shows an example of the stress-travel distance diagram (texture profile). In the stress-travel distance diagram shown in FIG. 1, the vertical axis is stress (unit: N), and the horizontal axis is plunger travel distance (unit: mm). The stress on the vertical axis is calculated by dividing the load value detected by the load cell of the rheometer by the cross-sectional area of ​​the plunger. In the stress-travel distance curve shown in FIG. 1, the stress starts from zero and shows a peak P1, then decreases and shows a negative value, increases again and shows a peak P2, then decreases and shows a negative value, and there are two patterns in which a positive stress value is followed by a negative stress value, and these two patterns correspond one-to-one to the two plunger thrust-retraction movements performed in the compression-recovery test. The "travel distance of the food composition" in the present invention is the travel distance corresponding to the first negative stress value shown in the compression-recovery test, and is the length indicated by the symbol D in the stress-travel distance diagram shown in FIG. 1. In addition, the "hardness of the food composition" referred to in the present invention is the maximum stress during the two plunger thrusts and retractions, and in the stress-travel distance diagram shown in Figure 1, peak P1 is greater than peak P2, so this is peak P1.

[0020] The present inventors have conducted various studies on a technology for three-dimensionally modeling a food composition containing a paste of food ingredients using a 3D printer, and as a result, have found that the "adhesion distance" and "hardness" of the food composition in the compression-recovery test are particularly important in such three-dimensional modeling. As a result of further studies, it has been found that the adhesion distance of the food composition is 6 mm or more, and the hardness is 8.0×10 4 N / m 2 It has been found that when the adhesion distance is 6 mm or more and the hardness is 8.0×10 or less, the food product is extremely useful as a raw material for shaped foods formed using three-dimensional modeling techniques such as 3D printing technology. 4 N / m 2The food composition of the present invention described below can be easily three-dimensionally modeled using a three-dimensional modeling device such as a 3D printer, a pressure extruder, a vacuum baking machine, or a molding die, and can easily produce a shaped food of a desired shape without problems such as poor extrusion or discharge of the food composition during the three-dimensional modeling. The shaped food has the characteristics of having a sharp outline, a good appearance, good shape retention, and resistance to crumbling. In other words, the food composition of the present invention has a fluidity that allows it to be handled by various three-dimensional modeling devices, and has the property of continuing to maintain its shape after three-dimensional modeling (after it has been made into a shaped food) (there is substantially no change in shape due to its own weight).

[0021] In order to ensure the effects of the food composition of the present invention, the adhesion distance is preferably 7 mm or more, more preferably 7.2 mm or more. The upper limit of the adhesion distance is not particularly limited, but is preferably 20 mm or less, more preferably 13 mm or less, in order to improve the ejection property of the food composition by a three-dimensional modeling device such as a 3D printer. From the same viewpoint as above, the hardness is preferably 7.5×10 4 N / m 2 Less than or equal to 7.0×10 4 N / m 2 N or less. The lower limit of the hardness is not particularly limited, but from the viewpoint of improving the shape retention of the molded object, it is preferably 1.0×10 3 N / m 2 N or more, preferably 1.5×10 3 N / m 2 That's all. The adhesion distance and hardness of the food composition can be adjusted to fall within the specific range by, for example, appropriately adjusting the type of food material, the method for producing a paste of the food material (the method for grinding the food material), etc.

[0022] The water content of the food composition of the present invention is preferably 50 to 95% by mass, more preferably 60 to 95% by mass, from the viewpoint of ensuring the effects of the present invention. The moisture content of a food composition can be measured by a heat drying method. Specifically, for example, 1 g of a sample (food composition) is dried by placing it in a thermostatic chamber at 135°C for 3 hours, and the moisture content of the food composition is calculated by calculating the percentage of the moisture content relative to 1 g of the sample, assuming that the mass difference before and after drying is the moisture content (g).

[0023] The food composition of the present invention may contain only a paste of food ingredients as a solid content, or may contain other ingredients (such as a modifier described below) other than the paste of food ingredients. In the latter case, the content of the pulverized food ingredients in the food composition of the present invention is preferably 80 to 99.9% by mass, more preferably 90 to 99% by mass, from the viewpoint of ensuring the effects of the present invention.

[0024] The food composition of the present invention may be composed of only a paste of food ingredients, but preferably further contains one or more modifiers selected from cellulose nanofibers, corn starch, and processed starch. By using these modifiers in combination with the paste of food ingredients, the physical properties such as the shapeability and shape retention of the shaped food when the food composition of the present invention is applied to three-dimensional modeling techniques such as 3D printing technology are improved, and the effects of the present invention are more reliably achieved. Cellulose nanofibers are fibrous cellulose with nano-sized fiber diameters, typically having a fiber diameter of 3 to 500 nm and a fiber length of 500 to 1000 nm. Any cellulose nanofiber that can be used for food can be used without any particular restrictions. Examples of processed starch include starch that has been subjected to one or more of the following treatments: etherification, esterification, gelatinization, cross-linking, oxidation, and oil processing. Etherification includes hydroxypropylation, and esterification includes acetylation. There are no particular limitations on the starch that is the raw material for processed starch, and examples include potato starch, tapioca starch, wheat starch, waxy corn starch, corn starch, and rice starch. The term "starch" used here means "pure starch" isolated from plants such as wheat, and is distinguished from starch contained in cereal flour.

[0025] The content of cellulose nanofibers in the food composition of the present invention is preferably 0.4 to 15 mass %, more preferably 0.6 to 15 mass %, relative to the total mass of the food composition. The content of cornstarch in the food composition of the present invention is preferably 0.5 to 20 mass %, more preferably 1.5 to 20 mass %, based on the total mass of the food composition. The content of the processed starch in the food composition of the present invention is preferably 0.5 to 20 mass %, more preferably 1.5 to 20 mass %, relative to the total mass of the food composition.

[0026] The food composition of the present invention may contain ingredients other than the above ingredients (paste of food ingredients, modifiers) for the purpose of improving seasoning, texture, shelf life, etc., so long as the effects of the present invention are not inhibited. Examples of other ingredients include seasonings such as salt and soy sauce; spices such as pepper; sugars such as glucose, sucrose, fructose, etc.; fats and oils, flavorings, and colorings. These can be used alone or in combination of two or more depending on the application of the food composition.

[0027] The food composition of the present invention may contain a "gelling agent caused by heat, metal ions, or acid or alkali" such as sodium alginate, curdlan, gellan gum, glucomannan, etc., for the purpose of improving shapeability, shape retention, etc. However, according to the findings of the present inventors, the modifier, particularly cellulose nanofiber, is more effective than the gelling agent in terms of improving shapeability, shape retention, etc. Therefore, when the food composition of the present invention contains the modifier, the gelling agent is not necessary.

[0028] The food composition of the present invention preferably has a sieve pass rate within a specific range, specifically, it is preferable that the food composition passes through a sieve with a mesh size of 1 mm and does not pass through a sieve with a mesh size of 3 mm (remains on the sieve with a mesh size of 3 mm) from the viewpoint of more reliably achieving the effects of the present invention. "Passing through a sieve with a mesh size of 1 mm" as used herein means that preferably 60% by mass or more, more preferably 80% by mass or more, and most preferably 100% by mass of the total mass of the food composition passes through a sieve with a mesh size of 1 mm. Also, "not passing through a sieve with a mesh size of 3 mm" means that preferably 60% by mass or more, more preferably 80% by mass or more, and most preferably 100% by mass of the total mass of the food composition does not pass through a sieve with a mesh size of 3 mm. The pass rate of the sieve is particularly influenced by the size of the particles (solid content of the food material) contained in the paste of the food material, so it is possible to adjust the pass rate by appropriately adjusting the grinding method of the food material.

[0029] The food composition of the present invention can be produced by preparing a paste of a food ingredient (main ingredient), adding other ingredients such as the modifiers and seasonings, and secondary ingredients such as water, as necessary, and mixing. The water contained in the food composition of the present invention may be only the water derived from the paste of the food ingredients contained in the food composition, or may include water added separately from the paste.

[0030] The food material paste is obtained by grinding the food material. Prior to grinding, the food material may be cut to an appropriate size. The method of grinding the food material is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, "volume grinding" in which mechanical stress acts on the entire food material to break it into small pieces, or "surface grinding" (also called grinding) in which compressive and / or shearing forces are applied to the food material to produce fine powder by scraping it off from the surface of the food material, and any grinding method known in the art may be used. In addition, the food material to be ground may be raw or may have been subjected to heat treatment such as steaming, steam heating, or baking. In other words, the food material paste used in the present invention may have been subjected to heat treatment.

[0031] The food composition of the present invention can be used as it is in a paste state (eating, cooking, refrigerated storage, frozen storage, etc.), but is particularly suitable for use after being shaped into a desired shape using a three-dimensional modeling technique such as 3D printing technology. Shaped foods obtained by shaping the food composition of the present invention into a desired shape using a three-dimensional modeling technique have the characteristics of having a sharp outline, a good appearance, good shape retention, and resistance to crumbling. The food composition of the present invention can be applied to known three-dimensional modeling techniques, specific examples of which include 3D printing technology, pressurized extrusion, vacuum baking, and molding using a mold.

[0032] The food composition of the present invention is suitable for 3D printing technology. That is, the food composition of the present invention is suitable as a raw material for a shaped food product formed using a 3D printer. The "3D printer" referred to here is a three-dimensional modeling device that produces a food product based on three-dimensional design data, and is also called a 3D food printer. The modeling method of the 3D printer to which the food composition of the present invention can be applied is not particularly limited, and an example of the method is an inkjet method.

[0033] The present invention includes a shaped food product including a product shaped by a three-dimensional modeling device of the food composition of the present invention described above. Examples of three-dimensional modeling devices include a 3D printer, a pressure extruder, a vacuum baking machine, and a molding die. Among these, a 3D printer is particularly preferred because it can maximize the characteristics of the food composition of the present invention.

[0034] Prior to producing the shaped object from the food composition of the present invention using a three-dimensional modeling apparatus, the food composition may be subjected to a heat treatment in order to make the physical properties of the food composition more suitable for handling in the three-dimensional modeling apparatus. For example, the food composition may be subjected to a heat treatment before being introduced into the three-dimensional modeling apparatus to adjust its moisture content to the above-mentioned preferred range. The heat treatment may be a dry heat treatment that does not add moisture, or a moist heat treatment that adds moisture, and may be appropriately selected depending on the purpose.

[0035] The shaped object constituting the shaped food of the present invention may be one obtained by shaping the food composition of the present invention using a three-dimensional modeling device, or may be one that has been subjected to post-treatment after such three-dimensional modeling. Examples of the post-treatment include drying, refrigeration, freezing, and cooking, and one of these may be used alone or two or more may be combined. For example, the shaped object obtained by three-dimensionally shaping the food composition of the present invention may be subjected to only drying treatment, or may be cooked after refrigeration or freezing, and the cooked shaped object may be frozen. The drying as the post-treatment can be carried out under conditions such that the moisture content of the shaped object after the drying treatment is preferably 50 to 95% by mass, more preferably 60 to 95% by mass. The "moisture content of the shaped object" referred to here can be measured according to the above-mentioned method for measuring the moisture content of a food composition (heat drying method). The drying method is not particularly limited, and for example, hot air drying, infrared drying, microwave drying, freeze drying, etc. can be used. The post-treatments such as refrigeration, freezing, and cooking can each be carried out according to a conventional method. Examples of the cooking include cooking by heating such as steaming and baking.

[0036] The shaped food of the present invention is particularly useful as a cooked frozen food. The shaped food of the present invention, which is a cooked frozen food, can be produced, for example, by forming the food composition of the present invention with a three-dimensional modeling device to obtain a shaped object, refrigerating or freezing the shaped object as necessary, cooking the object with heat, and then freezing the object. EXAMPLES

[0037] The present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited to the following examples.

[0038] [Production Examples 1 to 14] Carrots (food material) were cut into appropriate sizes, and the carrot pieces were heated in a steam convection oven under conditions of a heating temperature of 100°C, 100% steam, and a heating time of 20 minutes, and then pulverized using a mixer to obtain a carrot paste (paste of food material). This paste was fractionated using a sieve with a mesh size of 1 mm, and the fraction that passed through the sieve (hereinafter also referred to as the "1 mm mesh size sieve passing fraction") was separated. In Production Example 1, the 1 mm mesh size sieve passing fraction was used as a food composition. In Production Examples other than Production Example 1, cellulose nanofibers (fiber diameter of several nm to several hundreds nm) or cornstarch were added as a modifier to the 1 mm mesh size sieve passing fraction in the ratios shown in Tables 1 and 2 below, and mixed to obtain a food composition. The cornstarch was gelatinized by boiling in hot water and used as a modifier. Details of the raw materials used in the preparation of the food composition are as follows:

[0039] [Production Examples 15 to 17] Food compositions were produced in the same manner as in Production Examples 1 to 7, except that bell peppers were used instead of carrots as the food ingredient.

[0040] [Manufacturing Examples 18 to 23] Food compositions were produced in the same manner as in Production Examples 1 to 7, except that the moisture content of the food compositions was appropriately changed. The moisture content of the food compositions was adjusted by putting the food compositions into a frying pan and heating them while stirring.

[0041] [Test Example] The compression and recovery test was carried out for the food compositions of each production example, and the adhesion distance and hardness were measured. For food compositions containing carrot paste (production examples 1 to 14, 18 to 23), the compression and recovery test was carried out six times for each type of food composition, and the average values ​​of the adhesion distance and hardness measured during the six times were taken as the adhesion distance and hardness of the food composition. For food compositions containing green pepper (production examples 15 to 17), the compression and recovery test was carried out four times for each type of food composition, and the average values ​​of the adhesion distance and hardness measured during the four times were taken as the adhesion distance and hardness of the food composition. In addition, shaped foods were produced using the food compositions of each production example according to the following (method of producing shaped foods). A panel of experts visually observed the production process of the shaped foods, as well as the produced shaped foods, and evaluated the food compositions based on the results of their observations according to the following evaluation criteria. The results are shown in Tables 1 to 4 below.

[0042] (Method of manufacturing shaped food) The food composition is introduced into a 3D printer to produce a shaped food. The 3D printer used is the "Foodini" 3D food printer manufactured by Natural Machine of Spain. Specifically, the food composition before being introduced into the 3D printer is heated in a hot water bath until the temperature of the food composition reaches 85°C, and then quickly introduced into the 3D printer, and three-dimensional modeling is performed according to the 3D printer's instruction manual to produce the shaped food. The "Foodini" is equipped with a nozzle that extrudes the raw materials (food composition) of the shaped food, and the raw materials are extruded from the nozzle while being shaped into a predetermined shape. The designed shape of the shaped food product to be manufactured is a flat sheet shape with sawtooth-like irregularities formed on one side (long side) of a rectangle. Such a designed shape is a typical shape of a balun that is widely used as a partition to separate foods contained in a container such as a lunch box, and specifically, it is a flat shape with a thickness of 0.1 mm or more, and has a pair of short sides that are parallel to each other and have the same length in a plan view, and a pair of long sides connected to the pair of short sides, one of the pair of long sides being a sawtooth-like wavy line and the other being a straight line. The length of the short side is 40 mm. The angle between the long side and each of the pair of short sides is 90 degrees, and the length of the long side is 80 mm. The wavy line is configured such that a sharp convex portion that is convex toward the straight line side (inner side) and a sharp convex portion that is convex toward the opposite side to the straight line (outer side) are alternately arranged, and both convex portions have the same shape and size.

[0043] <Evaluation criteria for formability> A: The food composition is smoothly extruded from the nozzle of the 3D printer (good extrusion properties), the contours of the printed food are sharp, there is no distortion in the shape, and the shape retention of the printed food is good. The printability is good. B: The food composition is smoothly extruded from the nozzle of the 3D printer (good extrusion property), and the shape retention of the printed food is good, but there is some distortion in the shape of the printed food. The printability is at a level sufficient for practical use. C: The food composition cannot be extruded from the nozzle of the 3D printer (poor extrudability), or the extruded food composition cannot retain its shape, making it impossible to produce a shaped food. Poor shaping ability.

[0044] [Table 1]

[0045] [Table 2]

[0046] [Table 3]

[0047] [Table 4]

[0048] As shown in Tables 1 to 4, the food compositions of Production Examples 2 to 6, 8 to 13, and 17 to 21 had an adhesion distance of 6 mm or more and a hardness of 8.0×10 4 N / m 2 Since the above-mentioned condition was satisfied, the food compositions had excellent shapeability compared to the food compositions of Production Examples 1, 7, 14 to 16, 22, and 23, which did not satisfy this condition.

[0049] In addition, when the shaped foods made from the food compositions of Production Examples 18 to 21 were dried to adjust the moisture content to 55% by mass (dried shaped foods), the shapes were visually observed to be essentially unchanged from before the drying process, and the shape retention was good. The drying process was carried out in two ways: 1) a process of heating for 20 seconds at 600 W using a microwave cooker, and 2) a process of heating for 35 minutes at an internal temperature of 150°C using an oven, and both processes gave the same results.

Claims

1. It contains a paste of food material, and in the compression and recovery test described below, the adhesion distance is 6 mm or more, and the hardness is 8.0 x 10 ４ N / m ２ A food composition comprising: Compression / recovery test: Using a rheometer equipped with a cylindrical resin plunger 20 mm in diameter and 8 mm in height, a sample filled in a container at a product temperature of 20±2°C is plunged from a predetermined standby position above the sample at a speed of 10 mm / sec. When the distance between the plunger and the bottom of the container reaches 5 mm, the plunger is retracted in the opposite direction to the plunger's thrust direction at a speed of 10 mm / sec to return to the standby position. The plunger thrust and retraction motion is carried out twice, and the adhesion distance and hardness of the sample are calculated from the resulting stress-strain curve.

2. The food composition according to claim 1, wherein the food material is a vegetable.

3. The food composition according to claim 1 or 2, having a water content of 50 to 95% by mass.

4. The food composition according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising one or more modifiers selected from cellulose nanofibers, corn starch, and modified starch.

5. 3. The food composition according to claim 1, which passes through a sieve with openings of 1 mm but does not pass through a sieve with openings of 3 mm.

6. The food composition according to claim 1 or 2, which is used as a raw material for a shaped food product formed using a three-dimensional modeling device.

7. A shaped food product comprising a product shaped by the three-dimensional modeling device of the food composition according to claim 1 or 2.

Images