Method for producing refrigerated cooked noodles

Abstract

To provide refrigerated cooked noodles that exhibit improved separability.SOLUTION: There are provided raw noodles for refrigerated cooked noodles and a method for producing refrigerated cooked noodles using the raw noodles. The raw noodle material flour contains 3 mass% or more and less than 20 mass% of high-amylose wheat flour in the total mass of cereal flour and starch, the high-amylose wheat flour being a wheat flour having an amylose content of 40 mass% or more in total starch as analyzed by the Concanavalin A method.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for producing refrigerated cooked noodles. [Background technology]

[0002] Pre-cooked chilled Chinese noodles, chilled udon noodles, pasta, etc. are sold in supermarkets, convenience stores, etc. These noodles are cooked and then refrigerated before distribution, storage, or sale, and although they may be reheated before consumption, they are often eaten cold or at room temperature.

[0003] When cooked noodles are stored in the refrigerator, their texture tends to deteriorate due to aging, and the noodles stick together, making them difficult to separate. Starch is sometimes added to the raw materials to improve the texture of refrigerated cooked noodles and prevent aging. However, noodles that contain a lot of starch tend to be sticky and difficult to separate. Patent Document 1 describes that by using a grain flour composition containing grain flour, a specific starch, a modified starch, and a protein derived from durum wheat as the raw material flour, it is possible to produce noodles that have a good texture, such as viscoelasticity, and that separate easily when eaten, even when stored in the refrigerator.

[0004] In recent years, high-amylose wheat has been developed, in which the amylose content has been increased by introducing mutations into enzymes related to starch synthesis (Non-Patent Documents 1 and 2, Patent Documents 2 to 5). Because amylose is indigestible, high-amylose wheat flour is a promising dietary fiber material. Low-carbohydrate noodles can be produced by using high-amylose wheat flour as the main ingredient flour. Patent Documents 6 and 7 describe that udon and soba noodles produced from a flour composition containing 20% ​​by mass or more of high-amylose wheat flour have excellent dough workability despite being rich in dietary fiber, and remain easily loosened and have a good texture even after storage after cooking. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6408732 [Patent Document 2] Special Publication No. 2007-504803 [Patent Document 3] Special Publication No. 2008-526690 [Patent Document 4] Special Publication No. 2015-504301 [Patent Document 5] Special Publication No. 2019-527054 [Patent Document 6] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2023-098084 [Patent Document 7] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2023-136065 [Non-patent literature]

[0006] [Non-Patent Document 1] J Jpn Assoc Dietary Fiber Res, 2003, 7(1):20-25 [Non-patent document 2] Trends in Food Science and Technology, 2006, 17:448-456 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] As mentioned above, refrigerated cooked noodles tend to be difficult to unravel due to the noodles sticking together. This tendency becomes even more pronounced when starch is added to improve texture, etc. The present invention relates to providing refrigerated cooked noodles with improved unraveling properties. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The inventors have discovered that by adding a predetermined amount of high-amylose wheat flour to the raw material flour of noodles whose main ingredient is ordinary grain flour or starch, it is possible to improve the loosening of noodles when stored in a refrigerator after cooking, without imparting the hard texture that results from the high-amylose wheat flour.

[0009] As representative embodiments of the present invention, the following are provided. [1] Fresh noodles for refrigerated cooked noodles, The raw material flour for the fresh noodles contains high-amylose wheat flour in an amount of 3% by mass or more and less than 20% by mass based on the total mass of the cereal flour and starch, The high amylose wheat flour is wheat flour having an amylose content of 40% by mass or more in total starch as analyzed by the concanavalin A method. Fresh noodles. [2] The fresh noodles according to [1], wherein the raw material flour contains 5 to 50 mass% of modified starch based on the total mass of flour and starch. [3] The fresh noodles according to [2], wherein the processed starch comprises at least one type selected from the group consisting of acetylated tapioca starch and etherified tapioca starch. [4] The fresh noodles according to any one of [1] to [3], wherein the total content of flour other than the high amylose wheat flour and starch in the raw material flour is 60 mass% or more of the total mass of flour and starch. [5] The fresh noodles according to any one of [1] to [4], wherein the total content of flour and starch in the raw material flour is 80 mass% or more. [6] The fresh noodles according to any one of [1] to [5], wherein the refrigerated cooked noodles are refrigerated cooked noodles with improved loosening properties. [7] The fresh noodles according to any one of [1] to [6], wherein the high-amylose wheat flour is wheat flour derived from modified wheat with low SBEIIa activity. [8] A method for producing refrigerated cooked noodles, comprising: Cooking the fresh noodles according to any one of [1] to [7], and refrigerating the cooked noodles; A method comprising: [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide refrigerated cooked noodles with improved loosening properties. The refrigerated cooked noodles of the present invention have improved loosening properties while maintaining the texture typical of noodles made primarily from ordinary cereal flour and / or starch, without giving the impression of hardness in texture due to the added high-amylose wheat flour. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] The present invention provides refrigerated cooked noodles of the present invention. The type of noodles is not particularly limited, and examples include Chinese noodles, udon, hiyamugi, somen, buckwheat noodles, and other noodle strands, as well as pasta. Examples of pasta include short pasta, long pasta, and flat pasta. The refrigerated cooked noodles of the present invention are produced from a raw material flour containing ordinary cereal flour and / or starch as the main ingredient, to which high-amylose wheat flour has been further added.

[0012] As used herein, high-amylose wheat flour refers to wheat flour with an amylose content of preferably 40% by mass or more, more preferably 43% by mass or more, and even more preferably 47% by mass or more. The amylose content of wheat flour refers to the amylose content of the total starch contained in the wheat flour. The amylose content of wheat flour in this specification is defined as the value determined by analysis using the concanavalin A (ConA) method and can be measured, for example, by analyzing the wheat flour using an amylose / amylopectin assay kit (AMYLOSE / AMYLOPECTIN ASSAY KIT) from Megazyme. Conventional methods for analyzing amylose content include (1) methods utilizing the high iodine-binding ability of amylose (iodine affinity assays; e.g., amperometric titration, colorimetry, AACC61-03 method, etc.) and (2) methods utilizing the specific binding of amylopectin to ConA (ConA method). However, the method using (1) tends to calculate a higher amylose content. For example, the amylose content of high-amylose wheat flour containing a loss-of-function mutation (null mutation) of the SGP-1 gene described in Non-Patent Documents 1 and 2 is about 37% by mass when measured by the iodine affinity assay, but about 31% by mass when measured by the ConA method. The amylose content of conventional wheat flour is less than 32% by mass when measured by the iodine affinity assay, and less than 28% by mass when measured by the ConA method.

[0013] Examples of high-amylose wheat flour include wheat flour derived from modified wheat with reduced activity of the starch branching enzyme SBEIIa. Examples of such modified wheat flour include wheat flour derived from high-amylose wheat with a mutation in the SBEIIa gene and reduced SBEIIa activity, as described in Patent Documents 2 to 5. More specific examples include wheat flour derived from high-amylose wheat in which the amount or activity of SBEIIa protein in the grain is less than 2% of the amount or activity in wild-type wheat grain, and wheat flour derived from high-amylose wheat with null mutations in one or more, for example, one or two, SBEIIa genes.

[0014] High-amylose wheat flour can be produced by milling high-amylose wheat grains according to conventional methods. The high-amylose wheat flour used in the present invention may be wheat flour that essentially contains only the endosperm fraction of high-amylose wheat grains, or wheat flour (e.g., whole wheat flour) that contains not only the endosperm fraction of high-amylose wheat grains but also germ and bran fractions.

[0015] The raw material flour for the refrigerated cooked noodles of the present invention contains the high amylose wheat flour described above, but also contains cereal flour and / or starch other than the high amylose wheat flour as a main ingredient. Therefore, the refrigerated cooked noodles of the present invention have a texture similar to that of conventional noodles, without the hard texture associated with high amylose wheat flour. The high amylose wheat flour added to the raw material flour functions as a noodle loosening improver. If the content of high amylose wheat flour in the raw material flour is low, the effect of improving the loosening of noodles is not sufficiently achieved. On the other hand, if the content of high amylose wheat flour is high, the texture of the noodles becomes hard due to the influence of the high amylose wheat flour. In the present invention, high amylose wheat flour is used in an amount that improves the loosening of noodles while maintaining the texture typical of noodles made primarily from ordinary cereal flour and / or starch. The content of the high-amylose wheat flour in the raw material flour is preferably 3% by mass or more and less than 20% by mass, more preferably 3 to 15% by mass, even more preferably 5 to 15% by mass, and even more preferably 5 to 10% by mass, of the total mass of the flour (including high-amylose wheat flour) and starch contained in the raw material flour.

[0016] The flour that can be included as the main ingredient in the raw material flour is a flour other than the high-amylose wheat flour. Examples include non-high-amylose wheat flour (typically wheat flour with an amylose content of less than 28% by mass), rice flour, barley flour, waxy barley flour, buckwheat flour, soy flour, corn flour, oat flour, rye flour, and bran flour. The above-listed flours can be used alone or in combination of two or more. Preferably, the flour used as the main ingredient includes non-high-amylose wheat flour. Examples of non-high-amylose wheat flour include strong flour, semi-strong flour, medium-strength flour, weak flour, durum flour, and whole wheat flour. These wheat flours can be used alone or in combination of two or more.

[0017] Examples of starch that can be contained as the main ingredient in the raw material flour include unmodified starches such as potato starch, tapioca starch, wheat starch, corn starch, waxy corn starch, and rice starch, as well as modified starches thereof. In the present invention, these unmodified starches and modified starches can be used alone or in combination of two or more. Preferably, the starch is tapioca starch. The tapioca starch may be unmodified or modified, but is preferably modified tapioca starch. Preferably, the total starch content in the raw material flour is 5 to 50% by mass of the total mass of the flour (including high-amylose wheat flour) and starch contained in the raw material flour.

[0018] Preferably, the raw material flour contains processed starch. More preferably, the starch contained in the raw material flour consists of processed starch. The processed starch is obtained by subjecting unprocessed starch to processing such as cross-linking, phosphorylation, acetylation, etherification, oxidation, or gelatinization. Preferably, the processed starch is processed starch that has been subjected to one or more processes selected from the group consisting of acetylation, etherification, and cross-linking. Preferably, the processed starch is processed tapioca starch. Preferably, the processed tapioca starch is one or more selected from the group consisting of etherified tapioca starch and acetylated tapioca starch. The etherified tapioca starch and acetylated tapioca starch may be cross-linked. Preferably, the content of the processed starch in the raw material flour is 5 to 50% by mass, more preferably 5 to 30% by mass, of the total mass of the flour (including high-amylose wheat flour) and starch (including unmodified starch and processed starch) contained in the raw material flour. For example, it is preferably 5 to 50% by mass for udon noodles, and 5 to 30% by mass for Chinese noodles, soba noodles, and pasta. Preferably, the content of the modified starch in the raw material flour is greater than the content of the high-amylose wheat flour.

[0019] The main ingredients of the raw material flour include cereal flour other than the high-amylose wheat flour. Preferably, the main ingredients include cereal flour other than the high-amylose wheat flour and the starch. More preferably, the main ingredients include cereal flour other than the high-amylose wheat flour and the modified starch. The total content of the main ingredients in the raw material flour is preferably 60% by mass or more, more preferably 65% ​​by mass or more, and even more preferably 70% by mass or more of the total mass of the cereal flour (including high-amylose wheat flour) and starch (including unmodified starch and modified starch) contained in the raw material flour. Furthermore, the total content of the cereal flour, including the high-amylose wheat flour, and the starch in the raw material flour is preferably 80% by mass or more, more preferably 90% by mass or more, and may be 100% by mass of the total mass of the raw material flour.

[0020] The raw material flour may optionally contain other ingredients that can be used to produce noodles in addition to the high-amylose wheat flour, cereal flour, and starch described above. Examples of such other ingredients include proteins such as gluten, soy protein, milk protein, egg yolk powder, egg white powder, whole egg powder, and skim milk powder; fats and oils such as animal and vegetable oils, emulsified oils and fats, and shortening; salt; raw kansui ingredients; sugars; sweeteners; calcined calcium; dietary fiber; spices; seasonings; vitamins, minerals, nutritional enhancers; colorings; flavorings; dextrin (including resistant dextrins); leavening agents; emulsifiers; thickeners; water-retaining agents; preservatives; enzymes; pH adjusters; and oxidation-reducing agents. These other ingredients can be used alone or in combination of two or more. The amount of each of these other ingredients in the raw material flour can be determined appropriately depending on the type of noodles desired. The total content of these other ingredients in the raw material flour is preferably 20% by mass or less, and more preferably 10% by mass or less, of the total mass of the raw material flour; alternatively, the raw material flour need not contain these other ingredients. Preferably, the raw material flour contains gluten. Preferably, the gluten content in the raw material flour is 0.1 to 10% by mass, and more preferably 0.1 to 5% by mass, of the total mass of the raw material flour.

[0021] Fresh noodles for refrigerated cooked noodles of the present invention are prepared from the raw material flour. Preparation of fresh noodles from raw material flour can be carried out according to the usual procedures appropriate for the type of noodle. First, noodle dough is prepared from the raw material flour. This noodle dough can be prepared by kneading the raw material flour and kneading water in a conventional manner. In this case, the components of the raw material flour can be mixed in advance and then mixed with the kneading water, or the components of the raw material flour can be added sequentially to the kneading water and mixed. If necessary, eggs, vegetable powder, etc. can also be added to the dough. The kneading water can be water, saline, brine, brine, or gas-containing water (such as carbonated water).

[0022] Fresh noodles are prepared from the resulting noodle dough. Conventional methods can be used to prepare fresh noodles from noodle dough. Examples include a method in which the noodle dough is rolled using a noodle-making roller to obtain a noodle band, and then this noodle band is cut using a cutting blade or the like to obtain noodle strands, a method in which the noodle dough is extruded to obtain noodle strands, or a combination of these methods.

[0023] The resulting raw noodles are cooked to produce cooked noodles. The cooking can be carried out in accordance with conventional methods, such as boiling or steaming. Water, saline, etc. can be used as the water for boiling or steaming. The resulting cooked noodles are refrigerated to produce refrigerated cooked noodles. The refrigeration of the cooked noodles can be carried out in accordance with conventional methods. For example, the cooked noodles can be packaged in batches of one to several servings and refrigerated. The resulting refrigerated cooked noodles can be eaten as is or after reheating. Preferred reheating methods include using a microwave oven, boiling, steaming, etc. On the other hand, the refrigerated cooked noodles of the present invention are preferably not used as noodles that are further stir-fried or grilled, such as yakisoba. [Example]

[0024] The present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited to these examples.

[0025] High-amylose wheat flour (HAW): Flour obtained from wheat grains with a mutant SBEIIa gene and low SBEIIa expression levels. Amylose content: 47.4% by mass (of total starch). Semi-strong flour: Wheat flour derived from ordinary wheat. Amylose content: 23.5% by mass (of total starch). All-purpose flour: Wheat flour derived from ordinary wheat. Amylose content: 21.3% by mass (of total starch) Durum wheat flour: non-high amylose wheat flour Acetylated starch: Acetylated tapioca starch Etherified starch: Etherified tapioca starch The amylose content was measured using an amylose / amylopectin analysis kit (Megazyme).

[0026] Test 1: Production of refrigerated cooked Chinese noodles To 100 parts by mass of the raw material flour shown in Table 1, 37 to 38 parts by mass of water and 1 part by mass of alkaline mineral water were added and mixed to prepare a dough. The dough was rolled and combined using a noodle-making roll to produce a noodle band, which was then cut using a cutting blade (#18 square) to produce raw Chinese noodle strands (noodle thickness: 1.7 mm). The resulting noodle strands were boiled to a yield (relative to raw noodles) of 170%, washed with water, and cooled. The resulting boiled noodles were sprayed with a loosening agent (Ematec M3000; Riken Vitamin Co., Ltd.), packaged into individual servings, and stored in a refrigerator (4°C) for 24 hours.

[0027] The loosening and texture of the noodles after refrigerated storage were evaluated by 10 expert panelists according to the following evaluation criteria, and the average scores of the 10 panelists were calculated. The results are shown in Table 1. <Evaluation criteria> (Relax) 5 points: Very good loosening compared to the control. 4 points: Better loosening than the control. 3 points: Slightly better loosening than the control. 2 points: The degree of loosening is equivalent to that of the control. 1 point: Less loose than the control. (Texture) 3 points: Hardness almost the same as the control. 2 points: Harder than the control. 1 point: Significantly harder than the control.

[0028] [Table 1]

[0029] Test 2: Production of refrigerated cooked Chinese noodles To 100 parts by mass of the raw material flour shown in Table 2, 35 parts by mass of water and 1 part by mass of alkaline mineral water were added and mixed to prepare a dough. The dough was rolled and combined using a noodle-making roll to produce a noodle band, which was then cut using a cutting blade (#18 square) to produce raw Chinese noodle strands (noodle thickness: 1.7 mm). The resulting noodle strands were boiled to a yield (relative to raw noodles) of 160%, washed with water, and cooled. The resulting boiled noodles were packaged in individual servings and stored in a refrigerator (4°C) for 24 hours. After refrigerated storage, the noodles were reheated in a microwave oven to 70°C. The loosening and texture of the reheated noodles were evaluated using the same procedures as in Test 1. The results are shown in Table 2.

[0030] [Table 2]

[0031] Test 3: Production of refrigerated cooked udon noodles To 100 parts by mass of the raw material flour shown in Table 3, 42 parts by mass of water and 5 parts by mass of salt were added and mixed to prepare a dough. The dough was rolled and combined using a noodle-making roll to produce a noodle band, which was then cut using a cutting blade (#10 square) to produce raw udon noodle strands (noodle thickness: 3 mm). The resulting noodle strands were boiled to a yield (relative to raw noodles) of 165%, washed with water, and cooled. The resulting boiled noodles were sprayed with a loosening agent (Ematec M3000; Riken Vitamin Co., Ltd.), packaged into individual servings, and stored in a refrigerator (4°C) for 24 hours. The loosening and texture of the noodles after refrigerated storage were evaluated using the same procedures as in Test 1. The results are shown in Table 3.

[0032] [Table 3]

[0033] Test 4: Production of refrigerated cooked soba noodles To 100 parts by mass of the raw material flour shown in Table 4, 35 parts by mass of water and 1 part by mass of salt were added and mixed to prepare a dough. The dough was rolled and combined using a noodle-making roll to produce a noodle band, which was then cut using a cutting blade (#20 square) to produce fresh buckwheat noodle strands (noodle thickness: 1.5 mm). The resulting noodle strands were boiled to a yield (relative to fresh noodles) of 170%, washed with water, and cooled. The resulting boiled noodles were sprayed with a loosening agent (Ematec M3000; Riken Vitamin Co., Ltd.), packaged into individual servings, and stored in a refrigerator (4°C) for 24 hours. The loosening and texture of the noodles after refrigerated storage were evaluated using the same procedures as in Test 1. The results are shown in Table 4.

[0034] [Table 4]

[0035] Test 5: Production of refrigerated cooked pasta To 100 parts by mass of the raw material flour shown in Table 5, 34 parts by mass of water and 1 part by mass of salt were added and mixed to prepare a dough. The dough was rolled and combined using a noodle-making roller to produce a noodle band, which was then cut using a cutting blade (#18 round) to produce fresh pasta noodle strands (noodle thickness: 1.6 mm). The resulting noodle strands were boiled to a yield (relative to fresh noodles) of 160%, washed with water, and cooled. The resulting boiled noodles were coated with edible oil and fat, then packaged into individual servings and stored in a refrigerator (4°C) for 24 hours. After refrigerated storage, the noodles were reheated in a microwave oven to 70°C. The reheated noodles were evaluated for loosening and texture using the same procedures as in Test 1. The results are shown in Table 5.

[0036] [Table 5]

Claims

1. Fresh noodles for refrigerated cooked noodles, The raw material flour for the fresh noodles contains high-amylose wheat flour in an amount of 3% by mass or more and less than 20% by mass based on the total mass of the cereal flour and starch, The high amylose wheat flour is wheat flour having an amylose content of 40% by mass or more in total starch as analyzed by the concanavalin A method. Fresh noodles.

2. 2. The fresh noodles according to claim 1, wherein the raw material flour contains 5 to 50 mass% of modified starch based on the total mass of the flour and starch.

3. The fresh noodles according to claim 2, wherein the modified starch comprises at least one type selected from the group consisting of acetylated tapioca starch and etherified tapioca starch.

4. 2. The fresh noodles according to claim 1, wherein the total content of flour other than the high-amylose wheat flour and starch in the raw material flour is 60 mass% or more of the total mass of the flour and starch.

5. 2. The fresh noodles according to claim 1, wherein the total content of flour and starch in the raw material flour is 80% by mass or more.

6. The fresh noodles according to claim 1, wherein the refrigerated cooked noodles are refrigerated cooked noodles with improved loosening properties.

7. The fresh noodles according to claim 1, wherein the high amylose wheat flour is wheat flour derived from modified wheat having low SBEIIa activity.

8. A method for producing refrigerated cooked noodles, comprising: Cooking the fresh noodles according to any one of claims 1 to 7 with heat; and refrigerating the cooked noodles; A method comprising:

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