Processed food for microwave cooking

Abstract

To provide processed food for microwave cooking which, even when cooked by heating by setting a predetermined output power and a time, with a microwave cooker, can obtain appearance and texture like grilled fish obtained by heating and cooking from the outside of the food product.SOLUTION: It is a processed food made by vacuum-packing seafood and seasoning liquid, and an amount of oil and fat in the seasoning liquid as a whole seasoning liquid is 20% or more and 95% or less by weight, and a water content is set to more than 0% and 10% or less by weight ratio.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a processed food for microwave cooking, which can be distributed or stored in a refrigerated or frozen state and is cooked using a microwave oven. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art There is an increasing demand for processed foods that can be easily cooked using a microwave cooker, or a so-called microwave oven, regardless of whether they are for commercial or home use.

[0003] Patent Document 1 describes a method for producing processed foods that includes a processing step of wetting the surface of the seafood material with a sugar-containing solution after seasoning the seafood material, a drying step, and a coating step of oil or fat on the surface of the seafood material, with the aim of obtaining a favorable browning similar to that of fish grilled over an open flame and a good flavor and texture with a moderate amount of water evaporating and concentrating the umami of the ingredients when the seafood is cooked in a microwave oven from an unprocessed state.

[0004] In order to achieve the same purpose as in Patent Document 1, Patent Document 2 describes a process for making cuts in the skin and flesh of the fish to be processed, a process for applying a seasoning liquid to the surface of the fish, a method for grilling the fish in which the fish is placed on a special tray and heated, and a special tray with ribs protruding from the bottom, and the seasoning liquid containing wheat protein hydrolysate, sake, starch syrup, salt, sweetener, thickener, acidulant and sake lees.

[0005] Patent Document 3 describes a food for microwave cooking in which the moisture content of unheated ingredients is adjusted to 50-65%, and a paste-like browning material made of edible oil, soy sauce, and grain flour is applied around the ingredients, giving them a browned appearance after microwave heating. According to the examples, the browning material is made up of 50% to 70% oil by mass, 27% to 46% soy sauce by mass, and the remainder is grain flour, and the amount of soy sauce used contains at least 20% moisture by mass. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] JP 2012-161286 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2014-50348 A [Patent Document 3] JP 2006-25773 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] Microwave cookers, such as microwave ovens, heat food by vibrating the water molecules contained in the food with microwave irradiation, making it easy to cook food, but the temperature rises rapidly from the inside of the food, making it difficult to adjust the heating temperature uniformly throughout the food. As a result, there is a problem that the water evaporates excessively, making the food dry, or conversely, too much water remains in the food.

[0008] The present invention aims to provide a processed food for microwave cooking which, when cooked using the above-mentioned microwave cooker with a specified output and time, can be cooked from the outside of the food to give it the appearance and texture of grilled fish. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] According to the present invention, there is obtained a processed food for microwave cooking, which is made by vacuum-packing seafood and a seasoning liquid, characterized in that the amount of fat or oil in the entire seasoning liquid is 20% or more and 95% or less by weight, and the amount of water in the entire seasoning liquid is more than 0% and 10% or less by weight.

[0010] According to the present invention, there is obtained the processed food for microwave cooking, characterized in that the amount of the seasoning liquid added to the seafood is 3% or more and 20% or less by weight. Effect of the Invention

[0011] The processed food for microwave cooking of the present invention contains 20% or more and 95% or less by weight of fat or oil, preferably vegetable fat or oil, in the seasoning liquid, which allows the seafood to be cooked to be kept at a uniform high temperature, giving it the appearance of grilled fish.

[0012] By using powdered soy sauce for the seasoning liquid, for example, and using ingredients other than fats and oils with an extremely low moisture content, and by controlling the moisture content of the seasoning liquid to 10% or less by weight, it is possible to obtain the appearance, texture, and flavor of grilled fish without using sugar coating or ingredients that cause grilling marks such as grain flour.

[0013] Furthermore, by adding 3% to 20% by weight of seasoning liquid to the seafood to be cooked and vacuum packing it, the amount of oil and fat contained in the seafood after cooking can be appropriately adjusted, resulting in the texture and flavor of grilled fish. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] 1 is a graph showing the results of a fracture analysis of the giant bumblebee. [Diagram 2] 1 is a graph showing fracture analysis results of silver salmon. [Diagram 3] 13 is a graph showing the results of a breakage analysis of red fish. [Figure 4] 1 is a graph showing the results of a fracture analysis of white fish. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] The present invention relates to a processed food that can be stored in a refrigerator or freezer, which is prepared by adding a predetermined amount of raw seafood and a seasoning liquid that is rich in oil and fat and has a low water content, and then vacuum-packing the food.

[0016] The fish and shellfish used in the present invention are raw fish and shellfish that have not been heat-processed, and fillets of fish with rinds are particularly suitable for processing. Furthermore, examples of fish species include so-called ocean perch (red fish (Alaskan ocean perch), white fish (northern ocean perch), and spotted parrotfish, etc.), sea bream (big-eyed dory, spotted sea bream, etc.), mackerel (Japanese mackerel, Japanese mackerel, etc.), salmon (coho salmon, white salmon (autumn salmon), etc.), silver cod, Pacific cod, and yellowtail, but other fish species may also be used. Furthermore, fish with firm flesh, or so-called muscular fish, are more preferable. Furthermore, squid, octopus, shrimp, shellfish, etc. may also be used.

[0017] The present invention is characterized by having an oil and fat content of 20% or more and 95% or less by weight in the entire seasoning liquid, and an amount of water greater than 0% and less than 10% by weight. By increasing the amount of oil and fat, the temperature of the food can be kept high when heated in a microwave oven, resulting in an appearance such as browning on the skin similar to that of grilled fish. In addition, by reducing the amount of water contained in the seasoning liquid significantly compared to conventional products, it is believed that the seafood is steamed mainly using the water contained in the seafood, resulting in a texture similar to that of grilled fish, without being dry or sticky.

[0018] Microwave heating utilizes the dielectric loss of water by irradiating it with 2.4 GHz electromagnetic waves to vibrate the water molecules contained in food. As is well known, water boils at 100°C under an atmospheric pressure of 1000 hectopascals, but the crystal water that constitutes the crystal lattice of inorganic compounds such as calcium sulfate does not become free even at temperatures above 100°C due to interactions with inorganic compounds. Similarly, the polar groups of edible oil and water do not become free even at temperatures above 100°C due to interactions such as hydrogen bonds, and the temperature rises to a temperature at which seafood becomes browned. In other words, it is thought that the browning and flavor of seafood is caused by adding a certain amount of oil and fat to the seasoning liquid. On the other hand, seafood contains a certain amount of moisture inside, and this amount of moisture is sufficient to create a texture like grilled fish when cooking vacuum-packed processed products in a microwave oven, and various experimental results have revealed that adding more moisture than necessary from liquid seasonings, etc., results in a so-called watery texture, such as dryness and stickiness.

[0019] Based on the above considerations, the amount of fat or oil in the entire seasoning liquid will depend on the type of seafood used, but if greater importance is placed on the flavor and texture of grilled fish, a weight ratio of 40% or more and 80% or less is more preferable. The above-mentioned oils and fats may be any oils and fats that are generally available, but are preferably vegetable oils, more preferably salad oil, olive oil, corn oil, safflower oil, sesame oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, cottonseed oil, grapeseed oil, rice (bran) oil, etc. These oils and fats may be used alone or in combination. In addition, for flavoring purposes, flavored edible oils, butter, margarine, and other animal fats and oils may be added in an amount of less than 1% by weight of the total seasoning liquid in addition to the above-mentioned fats and oils, but these are not included in the above-mentioned fats and oils.

[0020] The seasoning liquid may contain powdered soy sauce, sugar, salt, various flavorings, spices, amino acids, colorings, emulsifiers, etc. For the reasons described below, it is more preferable to select additives with low moisture content.

[0021] The present invention is characterized by the fact that in addition to using a larger amount of fat and oil than conventional products, the moisture content is controlled to 10% or less by weight, and preferably 5% or less, and a seasoning liquid is added in an amount of 3% to 20% by weight of the seafood to be cooked, and then vacuum-packed. As mentioned above, the present inventor presumed that the amount of fat and oil and the amount of water are important for producing an appearance and texture similar to that of grilled fish. Based on this, the inventor conducted repeated experiments and found that not only the blending of seasoning liquid but also the amount of seasoning liquid added relative to the weight of the target seafood, i.e., the amount of fat and oil and the amount of water added relative to the weight of the target seafood, greatly contributes to obtaining an appearance and texture similar to that of grilled fish in microwave cooking. The amount of seasoning liquid added will vary depending on the type of seafood used, but if greater importance is placed on the flavor and texture of grilled fish, a weight ratio of 5% to 15% is more preferable.

[0022] Furthermore, the present invention can further enhance the above-mentioned effects by mixing or soaking seafood in a seasoning liquid of a specified composition, and then vacuum-packing the seafood, thereby allowing the seasoning liquid to penetrate deep into the seafood.

[0023] Various experiments have shown that in order for the seasoning liquid to properly permeate seafood, the viscosity coefficient of the seasoning liquid at 20°C should preferably be 20 mPa·s or more and 1000 mPa·s or less, and more preferably 30 mPa·s or more and 200 mPa·s or less.

[0024] A low surface tension of the seasoning liquid also contributes to the appropriate penetration of the seasoning liquid into seafood. Among the components constituting the seasoning liquid of the present invention, the surface tension of water at 20°C is the highest at about 73 mN / m, whereas the surface tension of all the oil and fat components is 30 to 35 mN / m, which is lower than that of water. In the present invention, the moisture content of the seasoning liquid is adjusted to 10% or less by weight, which is thought to contribute to the improvement of the penetration of the seasoning liquid into seafood. It is also believed that the adduct of amino acid and salt added as a seasoning functions as an emulsifier, lowering the surface tension and contributing to improved permeability. As a result of various experiments, it is found that the surface tension of the seasoning liquid is preferably greater than 0 mN / m and equal to or less than 50 mN / m.

[0025] The packaging containers used for vacuum packing can be any that are heat-resistant and pressure-resistant and made of common materials that are supplied or sold for packaging or vacuum packing food, etc., and any vacuum equipment that is supplied or sold for processing food, etc. can be used. It is more preferable to use a vacuum packing container equipped with a steam release mechanism or a pressure reduction mechanism.

[0026] The microwave power and heating time need to be adjusted depending on the amount of seafood and seasoning, but for 100g of seafood, it is generally recommended to use a power of 500W and a heating time of 4 to 5 minutes. EXAMPLES

[0027] The present invention will now be described in more detail with reference to examples. EXAMPLES

[0028] We prepared 100g of white fish fillets with skin (Kitanomenuke) and 10g of seasoning liquid with different fat and oil contents, vacuum-packed each product, heated them in a microwave oven (500w) for 5 minutes, removed them from the pack, and compared their appearance and texture. The results are shown in Table 1. The seasoning liquid was composed of salt, seasoning (amino acids), emulsifier, coloring, powdered soy sauce, and spices, and the moisture content of the seasoning liquid was 5% by weight.

[0029] The appearance is that the blackened areas (burnt areas) on the entire grain are inspected by Konica Minolta Japan Co., Ltd. TIFF2025009607000001.tif12152 was used as the standard. In other words, microwave cooked foods and foods cooked on a grill for 12 minutes (hereinafter, The results were rated as follows: A - 0.5 (almost no color difference, same color), 3.2 to 6.5 - B (the impression is that the color is almost the same), and 6.6 or above (the color is perceived to be different). A was rated as having the same appearance as grilled fish (◎), B was rated as having the same appearance as grilled fish (○), and C was rated as having a different appearance from grilled fish (×). In addition, five tasters compared the texture and flavor with 100g of white fish with skin that had been cooked on the grill for 12 minutes without being soaked in the seasoning liquid, and rated them as being the same (◎), almost the same (○), or very different (×), and the opinions of the majority are shown in Table 1.

[0030] [Table 1]

[0031] As shown in Table 1, when the fat content was less than 20%, the majority of respondents said that the skin was not browned enough, the texture was sticky, there was a fishy smell, and it was different from grilled fish. When the fat content was more than 95%, the majority of respondents said that the skin was browned too much, the texture was dry, and there was a burnt smell in the aroma. When the fat content was between 40% and 80%, the overall evaluations of appearance, texture, and aroma were all good. The viscosity coefficient of the seasoning liquid at 20°C when the fat content was between 40% and 80% was measured using an Anton Paar rheometer (MCR302) and was between 30 mPa·s and 200 mPa·s. In addition, when comparing with grilled products using red fish, John Dory, chub mackerel, coho salmon, silver cod, Pacific rockfish, yellowtail, and neon flying squid, similar evaluation results were obtained. EXAMPLES

[0032] 100g of filleted white fish (Kitanomenuke) with skin and seasoning liquid with different amounts of 50% oil and 5% water by weight were vacuum-packed, each processed product was heated in a microwave oven (500w) for 5 minutes, and after removing from the pack, the appearance and texture were compared. The results are shown in Table 2. The seasoning liquid used was composed of salt, seasoning (amino acids), emulsifier, coloring, powdered soy sauce, and spices.

[0033] The appearance was evaluated by determining the presence of blackened areas (burnt areas) throughout the lenticel using the method described in Example 1. In addition, five tasters compared the texture and flavor with 100g of white fish with skin that had been cooked on the grill for 12 minutes without being soaked in the seasoning liquid, and rated them as being the same (◎), almost the same (○), or very different (×), and the opinions of the majority are shown in Table 2.

[0034] [Table 2]

[0035] As shown in Table 2, when the amount of seasoning liquid added was less than 3%, the majority of respondents said that the fish was overly browned, had a dry texture, and had a burnt smell. When the amount of seasoning liquid added was more than 20%, the majority of respondents said that the fish was not browned enough, had a sticky texture, had a fishy smell, and was different from grilled fish. When the amount of seasoning liquid added was between 5% and 15%, the overall evaluations of appearance, texture, and flavor were all good. In addition, when comparing with grilled products using red fish, John Dory, chub mackerel, coho salmon, silver cod, Pacific rockfish, yellowtail, and neon flying squid, similar evaluation results were obtained. EXAMPLES

[0036] 100g of filleted white fish (Kitanomenuke) with skin and 10g of seasoning liquid with 50% oil and different water contents were vacuum-packed, heated in a microwave oven (500w) for 5 minutes, removed from the pack, and compared for appearance and texture. The results are shown in Table 3. The seasoning liquid used was composed of salt, seasoning (amino acids), emulsifier, coloring, powdered soy sauce, and spices.

[0037] The appearance was evaluated by determining the presence of blackened areas (burnt areas) throughout the lenticel using the method described in Example 1. In addition, five tasters compared the texture and flavor with 100g of white fish with skin that had been cooked on the grill for 12 minutes without being soaked in the seasoning liquid, and rated them as being the same (◎), almost the same (○), or very different (×), and the opinions of the majority are shown in Table 3.

[0038] [Table 3]

[0039] As shown in Table 3, when the moisture content of the seasoning liquid was more than 10%, the majority of respondents felt that the browning was faint, the texture was sticky and watery, there was a fishy smell, and it was different from grilled fish. In addition, when the amount of seasoning liquid added was 10% or less and 0.1% or more, the overall evaluations of appearance, texture, and flavor were all good. In addition, when comparing with grilled products using red fish, John Dory, chub mackerel, coho salmon, silver cod, Pacific rockfish, yellowtail, and neon flying squid, similar evaluation results were obtained. EXAMPLES

[0040] The processed products were prepared by vacuum packing 100g each of fillets of John Dory, Coho Salmon, Red Fish (Pacific Ocean Perch), and White Fish (Northern Ocean Perch), all with the skin, together with 10g of the same seasoning liquid used in the other Examples, with an oil content of 50% and a moisture content of 5% by weight. Each was heated in a microwave oven (500w) for 5 minutes and removed from the pack. The breaking strength of each of the two parts other than the skin was analyzed using a creep meter RE2 33005S (texture evaluation device) manufactured by Yamaden Corporation. For comparison, 100g each of fillets of John Dory, Coho Salmon, Red Fish (Alaska Ocean Perch), and White Fish (Northern Ocean Perch), all with the skin attached, were prepared and grilled, then subjected to a breaking strength analysis in the same manner as above.

[0041] The results are shown in Figures 1 to 4. In each figure, the vertical axis of the graph represents the load (gf), the horizontal axis represents the strain rate (%), the solid line represents the example of the present invention, and the dashed line represents the comparative example.

[0042] For both fillets, the microwave cooked products and grilled products according to the present invention showed differences in distortion rate depending on the part, but they showed roughly the same load (gf) and distortion rate (%) curves, and it was considered that there was no significant difference in texture.

[0043] Although the present invention has been described above using examples, the present invention is not limited to these examples. [Industrial Applicability]

[0044] According to the present invention, raw seafood can be easily cooked using a microwave oven, and can easily be obtained with an appearance, texture, and flavor similar to that of grilled fish without being sticky or dry. Therefore, this invention is expected to promote consumption of seafood, which tends to be avoided due to the complexity of cooking, and to have synergistic applications not only in the food processing field but also in related industrial fields such as the fishing industry.

Claims

1. This processed food for microwave cooking is made by vacuum-packing seafood and seasoning liquid, and is characterized in that the amount of fat and oil in the entire seasoning liquid is 20% or more and 95% or less by weight, and the amount of water in the entire seasoning liquid is more than 0% and 10% or less by weight.

2. 2. The processed food for microwave cooking according to claim 1, wherein the amount of said seasoning liquid added to said seafood is 3% or more and 20% or less by weight.

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