Composite heating method for food in a meal preparation cart

Abstract

To provide useful meal service by heating foods and food materials in a short time and while taking advantage of characteristics of microwaves of easily heating the inside of the foods, etc. more than the outside part, offsetting various disadvantages of microwave heating, in heating of the foods, etc. in a food service wagon.SOLUTION: A heating method for foods in tableware on respective trays T stored in multiple stages in a food service wagon 1, includes: compositely heating the foods in the tableware by microwave and by superheated steam; and performing the composite heating so as to keep the temperature of the central part of the foods at 75°C or more for one minute or more.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention mainly relates to a method for compound heating of foods in a food distribution cart used when providing meals to patients or residents in hospitals, nursing facilities, etc.

Background Art

[0002] Heating of foods by microwaves is widely performed in microwave ovens. Also, there is known a food distribution cart as described later.

[0003] That is, a food distribution cart composed of a cart capable of accommodating food and drink and a station capable of accommodating two of these carts side by side, and a microwave generator as a heating means described later is provided on the rear wall of the station.

[0004] That is, the heating means is configured such that microwave generators are mounted inside the rear wall portion of the station at intervals in the vertical direction, and a hollow box-shaped waveguide for conducting microwaves is provided on the front side of the microwave generators. With the cart accommodated inside the station, the waveguide is positioned below each shelf of the cart. And the waveguide is provided with a microwave irradiation opening on the upper surface, and microwaves are irradiated from the opening toward each shelf of the cart.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] Heating food with microwaves has the advantage of being able to be done in a short time. However, heating with microwaves has the characteristic that it is heated from the end of the object to be heated first due to the so-called edge runaway phenomenon. Therefore, it is likely to cause uneven heating and has disadvantages such as high power consumption.

[0007] Also, when reheating rice, main dishes, side dishes, etc. served on various tableware on trays stored in multiple stages in the cart during meal service, like the conventional meal delivery cart described above, each of the above foods is likely to become soggy and the taste and texture are likely to be impaired.

[0008] An object of the present invention is to provide a combined heating method that can heat foods and ingredients in a meal delivery cart in a short time, and while taking advantage of the characteristic of microwaves that the inside is more easily heated than the outer part of the food, etc., can offset the various disadvantages of the above-described microwave heating and realize the provision of useful meals.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0009] The present invention according to claim 1 is a method for heating food in tableware on each tray stored in multiple stages in a meal delivery cart for serving meals, and for the food in the tableware, 200 W to 400 W per tray heating with microwaves and 100 to 130 °C heating with superheated steam are performed in combination first set the central temperature of the food to 75 °C or higher and the combined heating is performed so that the central temperature of the food is maintained at 75°C or higher for 1 minute or more, and until the internal temperature and the external temperature of the food become substantially the same, heating by irradiation with the microwaves and heating by the superheated steam are simultaneously for 3 to 7 minutes performed, which is a method for combined heating of food in a meal delivery cart. In the present invention, "superheated steam" means superheated water vapor.

[0011] As described above, when heating is performed simultaneously by irradiation with microwaves and by superheated steam, if it is 3 minutes or longer, the food temperature can be reached, and it is recognized that in heating exceeding 7 minutes, the tendency for the power consumption to increase becomes large.

[0012] Claim 2 The present invention according to the description is a method for heating food in tableware on each tray accommodated in multiple stages in a food distribution cart for food distribution, and for the food in the tableware, 200 W to 400 W per tray heating by microwaves and, 100 to 130 °C heating by superheated steam are performed in combination, and the combined heating is performed so that the central temperature of the food is maintained at 75°C or higher for 1 minute or longer. For the food in the tableware, first for 30 seconds to 10 minutes perform the first heating by irradiation with the microwaves set the central temperature of the food to 75 °C or higher and then stop the irradiation with the microwaves, for 10 to 25 minutes and perform the second heating by feeding the superheated steam until the internal temperature and the external temperature of the food become substantially the same. This is a method for combined heating of food in a food distribution cart.

[0014] Irradiation with microwaves is performed for 30 seconds to 10 minutes. If it is less than 30 seconds, internal heating of the food by microwaves tends to be insufficient, and the effect of efficient heating in a short time by microwaves cannot be obtained sufficiently. Also, if the time for heating the food by superheated steam, which is the other heating method, becomes too long, there is a tendency for the overall heating efficiency to be low and for the heating time to be long. On the other hand, if the food heating by microwaves exceeds 10 minutes, it may cause a significant increase in the power consumption of the food distribution cart, may cause bumping of foods with a large amount of moisture such as soup, and also the tendency for the tableware to deform due to overheating of the tableware by microwaves becomes significant.

[0015] Performing heating with superheated steam for 10 to 25 minutes is because if it is less than 10 minutes, the steaming heating of the food from the outside by superheated steam becomes insufficient, and the taste and texture of the food after heating will deteriorate. On the other hand, if the heating exceeds 25 minutes, it is likely to cause excessive moisture in the food, impairing the advantages of food heating by superheated steam. Moreover, the heating time will become longer as a whole, resulting in the problem that speedy food heating (reheating) in accordance with the serving time cannot be performed.

[0016] The present invention of Composite heating method for food in a meal delivery vehicle is , the temperature of the superheated steam to is set to 100 to 130°C.

[0017] That is, in steam heating below 100°C, there is a risk of water droplet generation on the food surface. On the other hand, the use of superheated steam exceeding 130°C tends to result in unnecessary temperature rise.

[0018] The present invention of Composite heating method for food in a meal delivery vehicle is , characterized in that the wattage of microwave irradiation for each tray made into a tray is 200W to 400W. That is, if the wattage of microwave irradiation is less than 200W, the effect of shortening the heating time by microwave cannot be significantly obtained. Also, when it exceeds 400W, an increasing trend in power consumption appears.

Effect of the Invention

[0019] The present invention is a method for heating food in tableware on each tray accommodated in multiple stages in a meal delivery vehicle, which performs composite heating on the food in the tableware by heating with microwave and heating with superheated steam, and performs the composite heating so that the central temperature of the food is maintained at 75°C or higher for 1 minute or more.

[0020] According to the present invention described above, by irradiating microwaves, the food placed in the tableware on the tray is rapidly heated in a short time, and the inside of the food is effectively heated more than the outer part of the food. Further, by introducing superheated steam, the food placed in the tableware on the tray can be steamed and heated from its outer part. And in this case, the heating of the food by the superheated steam has the advantage of compensating for the drawback of uneven heating by the microwaves.

[0021] In short, according to the composite heating method of the food in the tableware on the tray according to the present invention, heating from the inside of the food in a short time by microwaves and heating from the outer part of the food by superheated steam are carried out synergistically. And due to such an organic integration of the heating characteristics by microwaves and the heating characteristics by superheated steam, the whole food in the tableware on the tray can be efficiently warmed without any gaps and in a short time. Moreover, due to the steaming heating by the superheated steam described above, there is obtained a special practical advantage that food heating excellent in taste and texture can be performed.

[0022] Further, the composite heating method of the food in the food distribution cart according to the present invention can be applied not only to the case of reheating the cooked food by putting it in the tableware on the tray, but also to the case of putting the food materials in each tableware and performing cooking by heating in the food distribution cart to provide meals.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0023]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Embodiment for Carrying out the Invention

[0024] Next, an embodiment when the present invention is applied to heating refrigerated foods stored in a food distribution cart will be described, but the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment.

[0025] First, the outline of the food distribution cart that executes the combined heating method according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The food distribution cart 1 shown in FIG. 1 is an example of a cart in which the heating method for refrigerated foods according to the present invention is used. The food distribution cart main body 2 is divided into front and rear two compartments 2b and 2c by a central wall 2a, and has universal wheels 3 and drive wheels 4 attached to the lower side of the food distribution cart main body 2, and substantially rod-shaped handles 9 extending in the left-right direction and attached to the front and rear outer surfaces 2f and 2g of the food distribution cart main body 2, respectively.

[0026] As described above, the food distribution cart main body 2 is divided into front and rear two compartments 2b and 2c. Partition wall members 5 are arranged vertically in the center of these compartments 2b and 2c to form a partition wall. A tray passage 6 is formed between the partition wall members 5 adjacent to each other vertically. At the same height position as each tray passage 6, tray receivers 7 facing each other are attached to the central wall 2a and both side walls 2d, and both side edges or one side edge of the tray T inserted from the tray passage 6 are supported by the tray receivers 7, respectively.

[0027] Cold air is supplied to the front and rear two compartments 2b and 2c of the food distribution cart 1 described above by a cooling device (not shown) provided in the food distribution cart 1, and the foods on each tray T are refrigerated by the cold air until a predetermined time before distribution. In the storage compartments 2e on both sides of the central wall 2a, microwave and superheated steam are supplied by a superheated steam supply facility built into the main body 2 of the food distribution cart 1, a magnetron for irradiating microwaves, and a waveguide (none of which are shown). These heating means are all controlled by a sequence control unit 11 so that their output powers and output times are controlled as described later.

[0028] Next, an embodiment of combined heating of microwave and superheated steam for the food in the tableware placed on the trays stored in multiple levels inside the main body 2 of the meal delivery cart 1 will be described. (Embodiment 1)

[0029] First, as shown in FIG. 2, when 325 W of microwaves are irradiated as the first heating in a state where cold cooked rice R is served in the rice bowl 12, as shown in FIG. 3, due to the characteristics of the microwaves, about 5 minutes after the start of heating, although the external temperature OT of the cooked rice R has only risen to about 70°C, the internal temperature IT of the cooked rice R has already been warmed to near 80°C, and the inside of the original cold cooked rice R has been sufficiently heated. Then, in such a state, the irradiation of the microwaves is stopped, and as the second heating, heating of the cooked rice R with superheated steam at 120°C is performed for 10 minutes. Then, due to the steaming heating of the cooked rice R from the outside by the superheated steam, the external temperature OT of the cooked rice R rises in advance from about 70°C to near 100°C, and the internal temperature IT of the cooked rice R also follows and rises to 100°C. As a result, the entire cooked rice R is heated uniformly to 100°C. Thereafter, the heating was stopped.

[0030] And, the cooked rice R with such a uniform internal and external temperature becomes a good-tasting and good-textured one containing appropriate moisture by the steaming heating with the superheated steam which is the second heating. Therefore, by the above-described combined heating, the cold cooked rice is efficiently warmed, and a cooked rice with a good taste and a fluffy texture can be obtained. Also, such excellent two-stage heating finishing characteristics can be obtained in the same way for other foods such as main dishes and side dishes provided in the meal service. (Embodiment 2)

[0031] Next, as shown in FIG. 4, on the tray T, for example, a rice bowl 51 for eating cooked rice, a soup bowl 52 for drinking miso soup, a plate 53 for eating vegetables, and a small plate 54 for eating meat are placed. The rice bowl 51 contains cooked rice R, the soup bowl 52 contains miso soup BE and ingredients TB, the plate 53 is filled with cooked vegetables such as broccoli BR and potato P, and the small plate 54 is placed with a formed hamburger HB.

[0032] Then, after accommodating the tray T in multiple stages within the main body 2 of the food distribution cart 1, heating with microwaves of 250 W and heating with superheated steam at 120°C were performed simultaneously and in parallel.

[0033] As a result, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, in each of the above-described foods R, BE, TB, BR, P, and HB, the internal temperature IT by microwaves rose earlier than the external temperature OT, and the internal and external temperatures IT and OT of each of the foods R, BE, TB, BR, P, and HB reached about 100°C in about 7 minutes from the start of heating, and were heated (reheated) to such an extent that meal provision was possible.

[0034] Note that the wattage of the microwaves in each of the above embodiments is per one tray T.

Industrial Applicability

[0035] According to the present invention, due to the synergistic effect of heating by microwaves and heating by superheated steam, efficient heating of the entire interior and exterior of foods and the like can be achieved, and moreover, the taste and texture of the foods after both heatings are excellent, so wide utilization can be expected.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0036] 1 Food distribution cart 2 Main body of food distribution cart T Tray

Claims

1. A method for heating food in tableware on each tray accommodated in multiple stages in a food distribution cart for food distribution, comprising: heating the food in the tableware by combining heating with microwaves of 200 W to 400 W per tray and heating with superheated steam at 100 to 130°C, first raising the central temperature of the food to 75°C or higher, and performing the combined heating such that the central temperature of the food is maintained at 75°C or higher for 1 minute or more, and simultaneously performing heating by irradiation with the microwaves and heating with the superheated steam on the food in the tableware for 3 to 7 minutes until the internal temperature and the external temperature of the food become substantially the same. A method for combined heating of food in a food distribution cart, characterized in that.

2. A method for heating food in tableware on each tray accommodated in multiple stages in a food distribution cart for food distribution, comprising: heating the food in the tableware by combining heating with microwaves of 200 W to 400 W per tray and heating with superheated steam at 100 to 130°C, and performing the combined heating such that the central temperature of the food is maintained at 75°C or higher for 1 minute or more. First, perform primary heating by irradiation with the microwaves for 30 seconds to 10 minutes on the food in the tableware to raise the central temperature of the food to 75°C or higher, then stop the irradiation with the microwaves, and perform secondary heating by feeding the superheated steam for 10 to 25 minutes until the internal temperature and the external temperature of the food become substantially the same. A method for combined heating of food in a food distribution cart, characterized in that.

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