Flour composition for noodles and method for producing noodles

Abstract

To provide a production technique of noodles which can be quickly boiled up while less likely to become soggy when boiled up.SOLUTION: A cereal flour composition for noodles according to the present invention includes cereal flour containing first wheat flour and second wheat flour. The first wheat flour has an average particle diameter of 10 to 40 μm and a protein content of 3.4 to 7.5 mass%. The second wheat flour is a durum wheat ground product. The cereal flour contains 10 to 80 mass% of the first wheat flour and 10 to 80 mass% of the second wheat flour. The second wheat flour has an average particle diameter of 30 to 100 μm, preferably.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a flour composition for noodles used in the production of noodles. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a method for producing fresh Chinese noodles or semi-fresh Chinese noodles that become edible in a short time by simply pouring hot water over them, in which high-protein wheat flour with a wheat flour protein content of 15 to 18% is used as the main flour ingredient used to make the noodles. Patent Document 2 describes a wheat flour composition for non-fried instant noodles that contains 20 to 80 mass% of wheat flour having an average particle size of 10 to 40 μm and a protein content of 4.5 to 6.8 mass%. The wheat flour composition described in Patent Document 2 is said to produce non-fried instant noodles that have good loosening and reconstitution properties.

[0003] Furthermore, in the past, wheat flour derived from durum wheat has been blended into the flour ingredients used in the production of instant noodles in order to shorten the time required to restore the noodles to an edible state and reduce the amount of oil absorbed. For example, Patent Document 3 describes the use of a flour ingredient for non-extruded fried instant noodles that contains 60 to 90% by weight of crushed durum wheat flour containing 25% by weight or more of durum coarse flour (250 to 500 μm). Patent Document 4 describes the use of a flour ingredient for instant Chinese noodles to be cooked in a microwave oven that contains 50 to 100% by weight of soft flour and 0 to 50% by weight of durum wheat flour. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 11-28067 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-162768 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 8-140609 [Patent Document 4] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-109930 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] There are various types of noodles, such as fresh noodles, dried noodles, and frozen noodles, but all of these noodles require a gelatinization process before they can be eaten. Boiling is a common method of gelatinizing noodles. For example, when eating noodles at home, fresh or dried noodles are boiled to gelatinize them, and when producing frozen noodles in a factory, noodles that have been gelatinized by boiling are produced as intermediate products. Whether noodles are boiled at home or in a factory, the shorter the boiling time, the better, and noodles are required to have the property of becoming edible after a relatively short boiling time (quick boiling characteristics). Noodles are also required to have the property of being resistant to soaking when boiled (soaking resistance). "Soaking" occurs when the moisture gradient of noodles decreases over time after they have been boiled. Soaked noodles lose their texture, or "firmness," due to the decrease in internal stress caused by the decrease in moisture gradient, and the noodles no longer have the desirable texture that is characteristic of noodles. A manufacturing technology for noodles that combines high levels of both quick-cooking properties and resistance to boiling soggyness has not yet been provided.

[0006] An object of the present invention is to provide a technique for producing noodles that can be boiled quickly and that do not easily become soggy when boiled. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention provides a grain flour composition for noodles, which comprises a grain flour containing a first wheat flour and a second wheat flour, wherein the first wheat flour has an average particle size of 10 to 40 μm and a protein content of 3.4 to 7.5% by mass, and the second wheat flour is crushed durum wheat flour, and the grain flour contains 10 to 80% by mass of the first wheat flour and 10 to 80% by mass of the second wheat flour. The present invention also provides a method for producing noodles, which includes a step of adding a liquid ingredient to a flour ingredient to prepare dough, and shaping the dough into noodle strands, and the flour ingredient is the above-mentioned grain flour composition for noodles of the present invention. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, noodles that can be boiled quickly and do not easily become soggy when boiled can be obtained. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] The flour composition for noodles of the present invention contains at least cereal flour. In this specification, "flour" refers to a substance derived from a grain that is powdery at room temperature and normal pressure, and is a concept that includes cereal flour and starch. "Starch" here refers to "pure starch" isolated from plants such as wheat, and is distinguished from starch that is inherently present in cereal flour or whole grain flour.

[0010] Examples of cereal flour include flours mainly composed of endosperm, such as wheat flour, rice flour, barley flour, waxy barley flour, buckwheat flour, soy flour, corn flour, and oat flour. Wheat flour includes strong flour, medium-strength flour, weak flour, durum semolina, and durum wheat flour. Other specific examples of flour include flours containing at least the outer skin and / or germ, such as "bran" mainly composed of the outer skin, and "whole wheat flour" containing the three main components of the endosperm, outer skin, and germ. Specific examples of bran and whole wheat flour include wheat bran and whole wheat flour, which are derived from wheat. Examples of starch include unmodified starches such as potato starch, wheat starch, corn starch, waxy corn starch, rice starch, and tapioca starch; and modified starches obtained by subjecting unmodified starch to one or more processing treatments (for example, cross-linking, phosphorylation, acetylation, etherification, oxidation, and gelatinization).

[0011] The cereal flour used in the present invention contains the first wheat flour and the second wheat flour described below as essential ingredients. The cereal flour used in the present invention may contain one or more types of cereal flour other than these two types of wheat flour, and the specific examples of cereal flours described above can be used as the other cereal flour.

[0012] The first wheat flour used in the present invention has an average particle size of 10 to 40 μm and a protein content of 3.4 to 7.5% by mass. If wheat flour having an average particle size or protein content outside the specified range is used instead of the first wheat flour, the desired effects of the present invention will not be achieved, such as the inability to impart quick-cooking properties to noodles. The average particle size of the first wheat flour is preferably 13 to 35 μm, more preferably 15 to 30 μm. The protein content of the first wheat flour is preferably 3.5 to 7.0% by mass, more preferably 3.5 to 6.5% by mass, and even more preferably 3.5 to 6.0% by mass.

[0013] In this specification, the term "average particle size" refers to the volume cumulative particle size D50 at 50% cumulative volume when measured in a dry state using a laser diffraction / scattering particle size distribution analyzer (for example, "Microtrac Particle Size Distribution Analyzer 9200FRA" manufactured by Nikkiso Co., Ltd.). In this specification, the term "protein content" refers to a value measured by the Kjeldahl method.

[0014] The first wheat flour can be any wheat flour that can be used to produce noodles, provided that the average particle size and protein content are within the above-mentioned specific ranges, and there are no particular limitations on the wheat variety, origin, etc. The first wheat flour can be, for example, wheat flour derived from soft wheat. Specific examples of varieties of "soft wheat" referred to here include soft red wheat and soft white wheat. Specific examples of soft red wheat include Japanese common wheat and US soft red winter (SRW). Specific examples of soft white wheat include US white wheat (WW) and Australian standard white (ASW).

[0015] A preferred example of the first wheat flour is wheat flour derived from a wheat selected from Japanese common wheat and ASW. Japanese common wheat is preferably "wheat flour derived from wheat with a low amylose content, in which the Wx-B1 gene has been deleted, or in which both the Wx-A1 and Wx-B1 genes have been deleted." Examples of this "Japanese common wheat with a low amylose content" include Kitahonami, Kinuakari, and Sanuki no Yume 2009 (all of which have the Wx-B1 gene deleted), and Chikugoizumi (in which the Wx-A1 and Wx-B1 genes have been deleted).

[0016] The second wheat flour used in the present invention is crushed durum wheat flour. In the present invention, "crushed durum wheat flour" refers to wheat flour (crushed endosperm) derived from durum wheat, regardless of its particle size. Crushed durum wheat flour includes durum semolina and durum wheat flour. Generally, durum semolina refers to crushed durum wheat flour with an average particle size of 250 μm or more, and durum wheat flour refers to that with an average particle size of less than 250 μm.

[0017] The average particle size of the second wheat flour (crushed durum wheat flour) is preferably 200 μm or less, more preferably 150 μm or less, and even more preferably 30 to 100 μm. That is, the second wheat flour is preferably composed mainly of durum wheat flour, which has a smaller average particle size than durum semolina.

[0018] A preferred example of the second wheat flour is one having an average particle size of 30 to 100 μm and a content of particles with a particle size of 200 μm or less of 90% by mass or more. In such a preferred second wheat flour, the content of wheat flour with a particle size of 200 μm or less is preferably 95% by mass or more, more preferably 100% by mass, based on the total mass of the second wheat flour.

[0019] The content of the first wheat flour in the cereal flour used in the present invention is 10 to 80% by mass, preferably 15 to 70% by mass, and more preferably 20 to 70% by mass, based on the total mass of the cereal flour. The content of the second wheat flour in the cereal flour used in the present invention is 10 to 80% by mass, preferably 15 to 70% by mass, and more preferably 20 to 70% by mass, based on the total mass of the cereal flour.

[0020] The cereal flour used in the present invention contains the first wheat flour and the second wheat flour such that the total content of all components contained in the cereal flour is 100% by mass. The total content of the first wheat flour and the second wheat flour in the cereal flour used in the present invention is preferably 30% by mass or more, more preferably 50% by mass or more, even more preferably 70% by mass or more, and even more preferably 100% by mass, relative to the total mass of the cereal flour.

[0021] The flour composition for noodles of the present invention typically comprises primarily flours containing a first wheat flour and a second wheat flour. The content of flours in the flour composition for noodles of the present invention is preferably 80% by mass or more, more preferably 85 to 100% by mass, relative to the total mass of the flour composition for noodles, and may be 100% by mass, i.e., the entire flour composition for noodles may be flours.

[0022] The flour composition for noodles of the present invention may contain ingredients other than flour. These ingredients can be any ingredient that can be used in the production of noodles, without any particular limitation, and include, for example, protein ingredients such as gluten, soy protein, soy polysaccharides, egg yolk powder, egg white powder, whole egg powder, enzymatic hydrolysates of egg protein, and skim milk powder; fats and oils such as animal and vegetable oils and powdered oils; thickeners such as thickening polysaccharides; alkaline water, calcined calcium, dietary fiber other than resistant starch, leavening agents, salt, sweeteners, spices, seasonings, vitamins, minerals, colorings, flavorings, dextrin, alcohol, preservatives, pH adjusters, enzymes, and malt. These ingredients can be used alone or in combination depending on the type of noodles to be produced.

[0023] The flour composition for noodles of the present invention is used to produce noodles. There are no particular limitations on the types of noodles to which the present invention can be applied, and examples include noodle strands such as udon, soba, somen, hiyamugi, Chinese noodles, and pasta (including short pasta, long pasta, and flat pasta); and noodle skins such as gyoza, shumai, and wonton. There are also no particular limitations on the form of noodles to which the present invention can be applied, and examples include fresh or semi-fresh noodles, cooked noodles (boiled noodles, steamed noodles, etc.), fresh or cooked frozen noodles, refrigerated or chilled noodles, non-fried instant noodles, fried instant noodles, and dried noodles.

[0024] The present invention includes a method for producing noodles. The method for producing noodles of the present invention comprises a step of adding a liquid ingredient to a flour ingredient to prepare a dough, and then shaping the dough into noodle strands, and comprises a dough preparation step and a dough shaping step. The method for producing noodles of the present invention is characterized in that the flour ingredient is the above-mentioned grain flour composition for noodles of the present invention.

[0025] The dough preparation step can be carried out according to conventional methods. Typically, a liquid ingredient is added to a flour ingredient containing the noodle flour composition of the present invention, and the mixture is kneaded using a mixer or the like to prepare the dough. As used herein, "flour ingredient" refers to an ingredient that is in a powder form at room temperature and normal pressure, and typically includes cereal flours (including the first wheat flour and the second wheat flour) and vegetable proteins such as wheat protein, but does not include auxiliary ingredients such as salt, sugar, oils and fats. The noodle flour composition of the present invention is typically in a powder form at room temperature and normal pressure. The liquid ingredient is typically primarily water, but may also contain other water-soluble ingredients such as salt, brine, eggs, etc. The amount of liquid ingredient added to the flour ingredient is not particularly limited and can be adjusted appropriately depending on the type of noodles to be produced, etc.

[0026] The dough shaping step can be carried out according to conventional methods, and can be selected from known noodle-making methods such as mechanical methods, hand-stretching methods, hand-making methods, and extrusion methods, depending on the type and shape of the noodles to be produced. One example of a noodle-making method that can be used in the present invention is a method in which pressure is applied to stretch the dough using various noodle-making methods such as rolling and roll-making to obtain a noodle band, and then the noodle band is cut out to obtain noodle strands. Another example of a noodle-making method that can be used in the present invention is a method in which pressure is applied to the dough to produce extrusion noodles. Extrusion noodles can be produced according to conventional methods using a single-screw or twin-screw noodle-making machine used for producing pasta. In this case, a die with holes of the desired shape is installed in the noodle-strand extrusion section of the extrusion noodle-making machine, and the noodle strands are extruded to obtain noodle strands with a shape corresponding to the holes. The cross-sectional shape of the noodle strands is not particularly limited and may be any shape, such as circular, rectangular, oval, or triangular.

[0027] When the object of production of fresh noodles is fresh noodles, the noodle manufacturing method of the present invention typically ends with the dough shaping step, and fresh noodles consisting of fresh noodle strands are obtained. When the object of production is semi-fresh noodles or dried noodles, it typically includes a step of drying the fresh noodles obtained in the dough shaping step. When the object of production is refrigerated noodles or frozen noodles, it typically includes a step of refrigerating or freezing the fresh noodles or cooked noodles obtained by cooking the fresh noodles with heat. When the object of production is instant noodles, it typically includes a step of cooking the fresh noodles with heat and then drying the cooked noodles. There are no particular restrictions on the method of drying the fresh noodles or cooked noodles, and it can be a non-frying drying method in which the noodles are dried without frying, such as natural drying, controlled temperature and humidity drying, or hot air drying, or a frying drying method in which the noodles are fried and then dried, and can be selected appropriately depending on the type of object of production, etc. [Example]

[0028] 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.

[0029] [Examples 1 to 15, Comparative Examples 1 to 8] Grain flour compositions consisting only of grain flour were obtained by mixing various grain flours (wheat flour) according to the compositions shown in the following Tables 1 to 3. Details of the grain flours used are as follows. ·All-purpose flour: Raw wheat “ASW”, average particle size 62μm, protein content 8.7% by mass Wheat flour A: First wheat flour, raw wheat "Kitahonami", average particle size 24 μm (85% by mass of wheat flour with a particle size of 5 to 55 μm, 65% by mass of wheat flour with a particle size of 15 to 40 μm), protein content 6% by mass Wheat flour B: Commercially available soft flour, raw wheat "WW", average particle size 50 μm, protein content 8.1% by mass Wheat flour C: Commercially available strong flour, raw wheat flour "1CW", average particle size 72 μm, protein content 11.8% by mass Wheat flour D: First wheat flour, raw material wheat "Kitahonami", average particle size 23 μm, protein content 5% by mass Wheat flour E: First wheat flour, raw material wheat "Chikugoizumi", average particle size 20 μm, protein content 3.5% by mass Wheat flour F: First wheat flour, raw material wheat "ASW", average particle size 28 μm, protein content 7.5% by mass Durum wheat flour: second wheat flour, average particle size 80μm Durum semolina: Second wheat flour, average particle size 260 μm Of the raw wheat mentioned above, "1CW" (Canadian Western Red Spring 1) is a non-soft wheat, while all others are soft wheats.

[0030] (Production example: production of fresh noodles) Fresh noodles were produced using any one of the grain flour compositions from the Examples and Comparative Examples. Specifically, a mixture of 1 part by mass of kansui ("Powdered Kansui Red" manufactured by Oriental Yeast Co., Ltd.), 1 part by mass of salt, 2 parts by mass of ethanol, and 38 parts by mass of water was first added to 100 parts by mass of the grain flour in the grain flour composition, and the mixture was kneaded at high speed (90 rpm) for 10 minutes using a noodle mixer to prepare a dough with adequate gluten development. Next, the prepared dough was rolled using a noodle roll to form a noodle band with a thickness of 2.5 mm, which was then cut into noodle strands using a No. 12 square cutting blade to produce fresh noodles. The fresh noodles produced were evaluated for quick-cooking properties and resistance to boiling stretching using the methods described below. The results are shown in Tables 1 to 3 below.

[0031] (Evaluation of quick boiling characteristics) The raw noodles to be evaluated were boiled in boiling water for 3 minutes and 30 seconds to obtain boiled noodles, which were then eaten by 10 trained panelists who evaluated the texture according to the following evaluation criteria. <Evaluation criteria for quick boiling characteristics> 5 points: The noodles are completely edible and in excellent condition. 4 points: The center of the noodles is slightly hard, but the noodles are good overall. 3 points: The center of the noodles is a little hard, but can be eaten without any problems. 2 points: The surface of the noodle strings is edible, but the core of the center of the noodle strings remains. 1 point: Both the surface and center of the noodles are hard and poor quality.

[0032] (Evaluation of boiling resistance) The raw noodles to be evaluated were boiled in boiling water for 3 minutes and 30 seconds to obtain boiled noodles, which were then quickly immersed in soup and left in that state for 10 minutes, after which the noodles were removed from the soup and eaten by 10 trained panelists, who evaluated the texture (noodle firmness) according to the following evaluation criteria. If the firmness characteristic of boiled noodles was sufficiently apparent, the noodles were rated as "not stretched after boiling," and the weaker the firmness, the more the noodles had been stretched after boiling. The soup used was a hot soup prepared by diluting a concentrated soup containing seasonings with boiling water. <Evaluation criteria for boiling resistance> 5 points: No stretching when boiled, extremely good. 4 points: Almost no stretching after boiling, good. 3 points: The noodles feel a little stretched after being boiled, but it is not a problem. 2 points: The noodles have become too soft after boiling and are slightly inferior. 1 point: The boiled noodles are noticeably stretched and inferior.

[0033] [Table 1]

[0034] [Table 2]

[0035] [Table 3]

[0036] As shown in Tables 1 and 2, the cereal flour compositions (cereal flours) of each Example contained the first wheat flour (wheat flours A, D to F) and the second wheat flour (durum wheat flour, durum semolina) in the range of 10 to 80% by mass, respectively, and therefore had superior quick-boiling properties and resistance to boiling stretching compared to the comparative examples which did not meet these requirements. This demonstrates that the noodles obtained according to the present invention are capable of achieving both quick-boiling properties and resistance to boiling stretching at a high level. "Quick-boiling properties" as used here refers to an optimal boiling time that is even shorter than the boiling time conventionally considered optimal for various types of noodles such as udon, soba, Chinese noodles, and pasta (the boiling time that results in noodles with good hardness and viscoelasticity after boiling).

Claims

1. Contains flour containing a first flour and a second flour, The first wheat flour has an average particle size of 10 to 40 μm and a protein content of 3.4 to 7.5% by mass, The second wheat flour is durum wheat flour cracker, The grain flour composition for noodles contains 10 to 80% by mass of the first wheat flour and 10 to 80% by mass of the second wheat flour.

2. The flour composition for noodles according to claim 1, wherein the average particle size of the second wheat flour is 30 to 100 μm.

3. The method comprises a step of adding a liquid ingredient to a flour ingredient to prepare dough, and forming the dough into noodle strands; A method for producing noodles, comprising using the grain flour composition for noodles according to claim 1 or 2 as the flour raw material.

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