Manufacturing methods for retort foods

Abstract

The present invention is a method for producing a retort-packaged food containing, as a solid ingredient, at least one among meat and seafood. First, a food mixture is prepared, which contains at least one among meat and seafood, at least 0.2 mass% of a fatty acid ester, and glycine and in which the total content of the meat and seafood and the content of the glycine satisfy a predetermined relationship and the content of a lysozyme raw material is less than 0.001 mass%. Next, the food mixture is airtightly packaged. Thereafter, the airtightly packaged food mixture is sterilized under a condition of 5≤F0≤50 to obtain a retort-packaged food.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for producing retort foods.

Background Art

[0002] Retort foods are applied to various foods because of their convenience of being able to be eaten just by reheating. Generally, retort foods are manufactured by subjecting foods sealed in a bag to retort processing (pressure heating sterilization processing). Thus, food poisoning bacteria such as Clostridium botulinum that can grow under conditions of normal temperature or lower are sterilized, and invasion of food poisoning bacteria from the outside can be prevented. As a result, retort foods are suitable for long-term storage.

[0003] By the way, when retort processing is applied to foods, depending on the composition of ingredients and raw materials, heat-resistant bacteria that can grow at temperatures of 40°C or higher may remain. When these bacteria remain in retort foods, when they are transported and stored in a high-temperature environment, the heat-resistant bacteria may grow unintentionally, and as a result, food deterioration may be caused.

[0004] For the purpose of suppressing the growth of such heat-resistant bacteria, Patent Document 1 discloses a bactericide for foods containing a sucrose fatty acid ester having an HLB value of 13 or more, lysozyme, and an amino acid.

[0005] Further, Patent Document 2 discloses a food freshness improver containing an egg white peptide obtained by hydrolyzing egg white and / or egg white protein and an emulsifier. This food freshness improver is described in the same document as having high safety, having high antibacterial activity against Gram-positive bacteria, Gram-negative bacteria, and fungi, having little decrease in antibacterial activity due to heat sterilization, and not affecting the taste and flavor of foods.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0006]

Patent Document 1

[0007] However, the bacteriostatic agents described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 have not been examined in any way to determine whether or not they have a bacteriostatic effect on thermophilic bacteria. In particular, when manufacturing retort foods containing meat and seafood, which are prone to the growth of thermophilic bacteria, bacteriostatic treatment of thermophilic bacteria requires heat sterilization under harsh conditions with an F0 value exceeding 100. However, such heating conditions significantly degrade the texture of the meat and seafood in the retort foods, resulting in a lower quality retort food.

[0008] Furthermore, as shown in Patent Documents 1 and 2, technologies have been disclosed for incorporating egg-derived proteins such as lysozyme into food for the purpose of bacteriostatic action against microorganisms that cause food spoilage and deterioration, as well as food poisoning bacteria. However, these technologies are undesirable for manufacturers because they increase manufacturing costs. Moreover, from the perspective of reducing the amount of raw materials that cause food allergies and allowing consumers to eat with peace of mind, there is a need for technologies to reduce the amount of egg-derived allergens in food.

[0009] Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a method for producing retort food that can maintain the quality of the food while being able to keep food poisoning bacteria, especially thermophilic bacteria, bacteriostatic for a long period of time.

[0010] The present invention relates to a method for producing a retort food containing at least one of meat and seafood as a solid ingredient, A food mixture is prepared containing at least one type of meat and / or fish and shellfish, 0.2% by mass or more of fatty acid esters, and glycine, wherein the total content of meat and / or fish and shellfish and the content of glycine satisfy the relationship (1) or (2) below, and the content of lysozyme raw material is less than 0.001% by mass, and then, The food mixture is sealed in packaging, and then, The present invention provides a method for producing retort food, which involves sterilizing a sealed food mixture under the conditions of 5 ≤ F0 ≤ 50 to obtain retort food. (1) The total content of meat and seafood is 1 to 3% by mass, and the glycine content is 0.10% by mass or more. (2) The total content of meat and seafood exceeds 3% by mass, and the glycine content is 0.25% by mass or more. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] The method for producing the retort food of the present invention will be described below based on a preferred embodiment. The retort food produced by the present invention is obtained by retorting (pressure-heat sterilization) a mixture of food containing at least one of meat and seafood as a solid ingredient. The retort food produced by the present invention is a liquid or fluid containing the solid ingredient at room temperature (25°C). Specifically, the retort food includes both the form of a "sauce" to be eaten with other ingredients or dishes, and the form of a "soup" intended to be eaten on its own. In the following description, when "X~Y[Z]" (where X and Y are arbitrary numbers and [Z] is an arbitrary unit) is written, it means "X[Z] or more and Y[Z] or less" unless otherwise specified.

[0012] The manufacturing method of the present invention is broadly divided into the following steps (A) to (C), and is carried out in the order of steps (A) to (C). (A) A step of preparing a food mixture containing at least one type of meat or seafood as a solid ingredient, 0.2% by mass or more of fatty acid esters, and glycine, and having a lysozyme raw material content of less than 0.001% by mass (preparation step). (B) The process of sealing and packaging the food mixture (sealing and packaging process). (C) A step of obtaining a retort food by sterilizing the sealed food mixture under the conditions of 5 ≤ F0 ≤ 50 (retort processing step).

[0013] The food mixture obtained in the preparation process consists of a solid component containing at least one type of meat and seafood, and a liquid component that is fluid at room temperature (25°C). Examples of meat used in this process include beef, chicken, pork, lamb, and other meats and their processed products. Examples of seafood used in this process include fish such as horse mackerel, squid, octopus, shrimp, shellfish, and other seafood and their processed products. Examples of meat, seafood, and their processed products include meat and seafood that have been cut into small pieces of a predetermined size, meat and seafood that have been ground or minced, and processed products that have been further heat-treated. Specifically, these include ground meat, surimi, sausage, bacon, etc. These can be used individually or in combination of two or more types.

[0014] In this invention, solid ingredients refer to ingredients that have dimensions that can be visually recognized when a food mixture or retort food is observed. Specifically, the maximum length of the ingredients is preferably 1 to 30 mm, more preferably 1 to 10 mm, and the minimum length of the ingredients is preferably 1 to 30 mm, more preferably 1 to 10 mm. In other words, it is preferable that at least one of the meat and seafood used as solid ingredients be small pieces having the above dimensions. The maximum length here refers to the maximum value of the length in the projection diagram when the ingredients are projected in any direction, and the minimum length is the minimum value of the length in the projection diagram. The maximum length and the minimum length may both be the same value. By using solid ingredients having such dimensions, the texture of the solid ingredients at the time of consumption is improved while maintaining the quality of the retort food produced.

[0015] The total content of meat and seafood is 1% by mass or more, preferably 1 to 35% by mass, more preferably 1 to 30% by mass, even more preferably 1 to 25% by mass, and even more preferably 1 to 20% by mass, based on the total mass of the food mixture. Furthermore, the total content of meat and seafood is preferably 1 to 3% by mass, or more preferably more than 3% by mass and 35% by mass or less, more preferably more than 3% by mass and 30% by mass or less, even more preferably more than 3% by mass and 25% by mass or less, and even more preferably more than 3% by mass and 20% by mass or less. If either meat or seafood solid ingredients are not included, the content of the not included solid ingredient is set to zero when calculating the total content. By setting the content in this manner, the quality of the manufactured retort food is maintained while ensuring a good texture and flavor of the retort food as a whole when consumed.

[0016] The food mixture prepared in this process further contains emulsifiers such as fatty acid esters. Examples of fatty acid esters used in this process include sucrose fatty acid esters, glycerin fatty acid esters, polyglycerin fatty acid esters, sorbitan fatty acid esters, and propylene glycol fatty acid esters, which can be used individually or in combination of two or more. Of these, sucrose fatty acid esters are preferred from the viewpoint of effectively exhibiting bacteriostatic activity against food poisoning bacteria, especially thermophilic bacteria, while maintaining the flavor of the retort food produced.

[0017] The fatty acid ester content is preferably 0.2% by mass or more, more preferably 0.2 to 0.5% by mass, and even more preferably 0.2 to 0.4% by mass, relative to the total mass of the food mixture. By setting the fatty acid ester content within this range, it is possible to maintain the bacteriostatic effect against food poisoning bacteria, especially thermophilic bacteria, for a long period of time while preserving the flavor of the retort food produced.

[0018] The food mixture prepared in this process further contains glycine. The glycine content is 0.10% by mass or more, preferably 0.10 to 2.0% by mass, and more preferably 0.25 to 2.0% by mass, relative to the total mass of the food mixture. By setting the glycine content within this range, it is possible to maintain the bacteriostatic effect against food poisoning bacteria, especially thermophilic bacteria, for a long period of time while maintaining the flavor and appearance of the retort food produced.

[0019] In particular, it is preferable that the relationship between the total content of meat and seafood and the glycine content satisfies either (1) or (2) below. Specifically, (1) when the total content of meat and seafood in the food mixture is 1 to 3% by mass, the glycine content is preferably 0.10% by mass or more, more preferably 0.10 to 2.0% by mass, and even more preferably 0.10 to 0.50% by mass, relative to the total mass of the food mixture. Also, (2) when the total content of meat and seafood in the food mixture is more than 3% by mass, the glycine content is preferably 0.25% by mass or more, more preferably 0.25 to 2.0% by mass, and even more preferably 0.25 to 1.0% by mass. By adjusting the glycine content in this way according to the total content of meat and seafood, it is advantageous that good taste and color can be maintained while maintaining the bacteriostatic effect of thermophilic bacteria for a long period of time.

[0020] One of the features of the present invention is to reduce the content of lysozyme raw materials. The lysozyme raw materials in the present invention mainly refer to those intentionally mixed as raw materials from the outside for the purpose of mainly bacteriostatic against food poisoning bacteria, and the lysozyme components inherently contained in the raw materials constituting the solid ingredients and liquid parts included in food mixtures and retort foods, and the lysozyme raw materials inevitably mixed from other manufacturing processes are acceptable. In the present invention, the blending amount of the lysozyme raw material with respect to the total mass of the food mixture is less than 0.001% by mass, more preferably less than 0.0001% by mass, and even more preferably substantially free of the lysozyme raw material. Even with such a configuration, the bacteriostatic action against food poisoning bacteria, particularly thermophilic bacteria having growth ability in a temperature range exceeding room temperature, can be exhibited for a long period, and the flavor of the produced retort food can be maintained for a long period. Examples of the lysozyme raw material include preparations and food additives prepared by concentrating lysozyme from food raw materials containing lysozyme such as egg white so that an effective amount of lysozyme can be easily blended into the food.

[0021] The method for preparing the food mixture is not particularly limited, and at least one of livestock meat and seafood, fatty acid ester and glycine may be mixed in any order or simultaneously. Specifically, at least one of livestock meat and seafood, fatty acid ester and glycine may be added and mixed simultaneously to prepare the food mixture. Alternatively, an intermediate mixture containing at least one of livestock meat and seafood may be obtained, and then the fatty acid ester and glycine may be mixed with the intermediate mixture to prepare the food mixture. Further, the preparation process may be performed under non-heating conditions for all or part of this process, or may be performed under heating conditions. The heating in this process can utilize known methods available for heating this type of sauce, and the heating in each process is usually carried out under conditions where the inside (center part) of the ingredients to be mixed is heated.

[0022] In the preparation process, if necessary, other ingredients and raw materials described below may be further mixed. Even when further mixing other ingredients and raw materials, the order of mixing is not particularly limited. For example, at least one of livestock meat and seafood, fatty acid esters, glycine, and other ingredients and raw materials may be mixed simultaneously. After obtaining an intermediate mixture by mixing at least one of livestock meat and seafood and other ingredients and raw materials in any order, fatty acid esters and glycine may be added to and mixed with the intermediate mixture. Even in this case, the heating conditions can be the same as those described above.

[0023] Next, the obtained food mixture is hermetically packaged (hermetic packaging process). That is, in this process, the obtained food mixture is contained in a container and sealed to obtain a food mixture packed in a container. By including such a process, the handling, transportation, and storage properties, etc. of the manufactured retort food are improved, making it suitable for market distribution. Note that hermetic packaging refers to a form in which the contents are packaged to prevent any mixing of solids, liquids, and gases.

[0024] The container used for hermetically packaging the food mixture is not particularly limited as long as it can be sealed, and a bag or molded body made of plastic, glass, metal, or a combination thereof can be used. More specifically, plastic containers, bottles, cans, pouch containers, etc. can be mentioned. When hermetically packaging the food mixture, a microbial control treatment such as a gas replacement treatment such as inert gas replacement filling may be performed.

[0025] Finally, the hermetically packaged food mixture is sterilized under predetermined heating conditions to obtain a retort food (retort treatment process). Since the retort food is obtained by sterilizing the food mixture after hermetic packaging, the food mixture and the retort food have substantially the same ingredients, components, and their contents.

[0026] Sealed food mixtures are sterilized by retort processing (pressure-heat sterilization). The heating conditions in the sterilization process are preferably a temperature of 100°C to 160°C and preferably a time of 5 minutes to 60 minutes. When the conditions of the retort processing are expressed in terms of the F0 value, the sterilization process is preferably performed within the range of the F0 value of 5≦F0≦50, and more preferably within the range of 15≦F0≦50. By performing sterilization within this range, it is possible to effectively kill microorganisms that cause spoilage and deterioration of food, as well as food poisoning bacteria, while maintaining a good texture for meat and seafood.

[0027] Retort foods manufactured through the above process maintain the quality of the food itself for a long period of time while food poisoning bacteria, especially thermophilic bacteria, are kept in a state of bacteriostatic activity for an extended period. Specifically, thermophilic bacteria that may remain in food even after retort processing include, for example, heat-resistant spore-forming bacteria that have growth activity at temperatures above 40°C, such as T. mathranii, T. thermosaccharolyticum, M. thermoacetica, D. nigrificans, and G. stearothermophilus. These bacteria tend to proliferate in the presence of meat and seafood. Retort foods containing meat and seafood can be transported and stored in high-temperature environments, which can lead to the proliferation of thermophilic bacteria and, as a result, spoilage and deterioration of the food's quality. In this regard, according to the manufacturing method of the present invention, since foods containing meat and seafood are retorted in the presence of fatty acid esters and glycine, which have a bacteriostatic effect on these thermophilic bacteria, the retort processing can kill microorganisms that can proliferate at room temperature while suppressing the unintended proliferation of thermophilic bacteria. As a result, spoilage and deterioration of retort foods can be suppressed for a long period of time, and the high quality of the food, such as texture and flavor, can be maintained for a long period of time, making it suitable for long-term storage. Furthermore, according to the present invention, there is no need to employ harsh retort processing conditions to completely kill thermophilic bacteria, so meat and seafood are less likely to be excessively heated and denatured, and the good texture and flavor of meat and seafood can be maintained, which is another advantage.

[0028] Furthermore, according to the present invention, the amount of lysozyme raw material that can be used as a raw material for retort foods can be reduced, so manufacturers do not need to use expensive raw materials, and a reduction in manufacturing costs can be expected. In addition, even when the amount of lysozyme raw material is reduced, the unintended growth of thermophilic bacteria can be suppressed, so spoilage and deterioration of retort foods can be prevented for a long period of time, the high quality of the food can be maintained for a long period of time, and it becomes suitable for long-term storage. Moreover, for consumers, the amount of raw materials that cause food allergies is reduced, so they can eat retort foods with peace of mind.

[0029] The retort foods produced through the process described above can be eaten with, for example, stews, hamburgers, pasta dishes, rice dishes, bread and other bakery items, or they can be eaten as is, and are particularly suitable as pasta sauces. When using retort foods as pasta sauces, examples of pasta dishes that can be used in combination include spaghetti, macaroni, and gratin.

[0030] In the preparation process, other ingredients and raw materials other than the above-mentioned components may be added to the food mixture, insofar as the effects of the present invention are achieved. Examples of other ingredients include vegetables such as tomatoes and spinach, root vegetables such as carrots, onions, potatoes, and sweet potatoes, and mushrooms such as shiitake, maitake, button mushrooms, shimeji, porcini, and king oyster mushrooms. These ingredients may be used individually or in combination. These ingredients may be added as solid ingredients having the above-mentioned dimensions, or as liquids such as pastes or purees. The amount of other ingredients to be added should be set appropriately based on the amount used in typical retort foods containing ingredients, and generally, it is preferably 40% by mass or less, more preferably 8 to 35% by mass, and even more preferably about 15 to 30% by mass of the total mass of the food mixture.

[0031] Ingredients include, for example, vegetable extracts, meat extracts, broths, stocks, bouillon, and consommé extracts; dairy products such as milk, cheese, and fresh cream; flours such as wheat flour; alcoholic beverages such as wine; vegetable oils such as olive oil, soybean oil, and rapeseed oil; animal fats such as butter; starches such as cornstarch and potato starch; spices such as herbs, pepper, and garlic; seasonings such as salt, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, and glutamic acid; water, eggs, pastes and purees of meat, vegetables, and beans; acidulants, emulsifiers, thickeners, stabilizers, and colorings. Depending on the type of sauce, these can be used individually or in combination of two or more. These ingredients can also be used individually or in combination of two or more to form the liquid portion. Examples of sauces that can be used as the liquid portion include meat sauce, white sauce, cream sauce, carbonara sauce, oil sauce, tomato sauce, butter sauce, and soy sauce. Examples of soups that can be used as the liquid portion include consommé soup.

[0032] The other ingredients and raw materials mentioned above may be uncooked, blanched, roasted, boiled, dried, frozen, etc., and may also be cut. These can be used individually or in combination of two or more. [Examples]

[0033] 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. In Table 1, blank spaces indicate that no ingredients were added, and shaded areas indicate that no evaluation was performed.

[0034] [Examples 1-6 and Comparative Examples 1-10] One commercially available solid consommé (Ajinomoto Co., Inc., Ajinomoto KK Consommé Solid Type) was dispersed in 300 mL of water to prepare a consommé dispersion. To this dispersion, small pieces of bacon (Examples 1-5 and Comparative Examples 1-7) or ground pork (Example 6 and Comparative Examples 8-9) were added as meat ingredients. The mixture was then heated for 10 minutes to a temperature of 80°C to obtain an intermediate mixture. Fatty acid ester (sucrose palmitate; Mitsubishi Chemical Foods, P-1670) and glycine (Showa Denko Corporation) were added to this intermediate mixture and mixed at room temperature to prepare a food mixture (consommé soup with ingredients). The meat ingredients were added to account for 15% by mass of the total mass of the food mixture. The fatty acid ester and glycine were added to the total mass of the food mixture in the mass proportions shown in Table 1 below. None of the examples or comparative examples contained lysozyme raw materials.

[0035] [Example 7 and Comparative Examples 11-12] A food mixture (consommé soup with ingredients) was prepared in the same manner as in Example 1, except that squid pieces were added to the consommé dispersion as a substitute for meat, and fatty acid esters and glycine were added in the mass proportions shown in Table 1 below. The amount of seafood added was 15% by mass of the total mass of the food mixture. Lysozyme raw material was not included in any of the examples or comparative examples.

[0036] [Example 8 and Comparative Example 13] Pork mince was used as the meat component, and the ingredients shown in Table 2 below were mixed and heated for 10 minutes until the mixture reached a temperature of 80°C to obtain an intermediate mixture. The fatty acid ester and glycine mentioned above were added to this intermediate mixture and mixed at room temperature to prepare a food mixture (meat sauce with ingredients). The meat components, fatty acid ester, and glycine were blended in the mass proportions shown in Table 1 below, relative to the total mass of the food mixture. The mass proportions of each ingredient shown in Table 2 are relative to the total mass of the food mixture. Lysozyme was not included in any of the examples or comparative examples.

[0037] [Examples 9-11 and Comparative Examples 14-15] Bacon flakes (Examples 9-10 and Comparative Examples 13-14) or ground pork (Example 11) were used as the meat component, and these were blended to make up 3% by mass of the total mass of the food mixture. Fatty acid esters and glycine were blended in the mass ratios shown in Table 1 below. Otherwise, a food mixture (consommé soup with ingredients) was prepared in the same manner as in Example 1. None of the examples or comparative examples contained lysozyme as a raw material.

[0038] [Reference example 1] A food mixture was prepared in the same manner as in Example 1, except that no meat or seafood was used as solid ingredients, and fatty acid esters and glycine were added to the consommé dispersion in the mass ratios shown in Table 1 below. This reference example, like the above-mentioned examples and comparative examples, did not contain lysozyme raw materials.

[0039] [1. Evaluation of bacteriostatic activity of microorganisms] NaOH was added to the food mixtures obtained in the examples, comparative examples, and reference examples to adjust the pH to 6.1. 70 g of the pH-adjusted food mixture was mixed with a cocktail of bacterial solutions (5 × 10) containing the thermophilic strains shown below. 4 0.4 mL of (cfu / mL) was added and inoculated, and these were then placed in pouch containers of the aforementioned dimensions and sealed. Separately, as a negative control, uninoculated food mixtures were similarly placed in pouch containers after pH adjustment and sealed.

[0040] <High-temperature bacterial strains in a cocktail of bacterial solutions> T.mathranii, T.thermosaccharolyticum, M.thermoacetica, D.nigrificans, G.stearothermophilus.

[0041] Next, the sealed and inoculated food mixture and the negative control were sterilized by retorting under the F0 value conditions shown in Table 1 below, to obtain retort foods for the example, comparative example, and reference example, respectively. These retort foods were stored in pouch containers in a constant temperature bath at 55°C for 30 days. After storage in the constant temperature bath, each retort food was evaluated for bacteriostatic activity of microorganisms based on the following judgments 1 to 3.

[0042] <Judgment 1: External observation> For each retort food after storage in a constant temperature bath, the degree of expansion of each pouch container and the viscosity of the contents inside the pouch container were visually evaluated in comparison to a negative control according to the following criteria. For visual observation, 10 samples were independently prepared for each of the example, comparative example, and reference example retort foods, and these samples were observed and evaluated. • "Good": Compared to the negative control, no expansion of the pouch container was observed in any of the samples, and no change in the viscosity of the contents was observed in any of the samples. • "Poor": Compared to the negative control, swelling of the pouch container is observed in one or more samples, or the viscosity of the contents is altered in one or more samples.

[0043] <Judgment 2: pH evaluation> For each retort food product after storage in a constant temperature bath, the pH of the contents inside the pouch container was evaluated using pH test paper (AS ONE Corporation, stick pH test paper) according to the following criteria. pH evaluation was performed by independently preparing 10 samples for each of the example, comparative example, and reference example retort foods. • "Good": Compared to the negative control, all samples showed a pH variation of less than 0.3. • "Poor": One or more samples show a pH variation of 0.3 or higher compared to the negative control.

[0044] <Judgment 3: Bacteria count measurement> (1) After performing heat shock on the cocktail bacterial solutions described above under the following conditions, the cells were cultured under the culture conditions shown below, and the bacterial count (cfu / g) of each strain at the time of inoculation was measured. Hereinafter, this bacterial count will also be referred to as the "initial bacterial count". (2) Each retort food product was cultured under the following conditions after storage in a constant temperature bath, and the number of bacteria (cfu / g) of each strain after storage was measured. Hereinafter, this number will also be referred to as the "bacterial count after storage." (3) The initial bacterial count and the bacterial count after storage were compared and evaluated according to the following criteria. These bacterial count measurements were performed by independently preparing 10 samples for each of the retort foods in the examples, comparative examples, and reference examples. • "Good": The ratio of the number of bacteria after storage to the initial number of bacteria is less than 100 for all samples. • "Poor": The ratio of the number of bacteria after storage to the initial number of bacteria is 100 or more in one or more samples.

[0045] (Heat shock conditions) T. mathranii: 100℃, 20 minutes T. thermosaccharolyticum: 100℃, 10 minutes M. thermoacetica: 100℃, 30 minutes D. nigrificans: 100℃, 10 minutes G. stearothermophilus: 100℃, 10 minutes

[0046] (Culture conditions) T.mathranii: Modified TGC medium, 60℃, 7 days (anaerobic conditions) T. thermosaccharolyticum: Modified TGC medium, 55°C, 2 days (anaerobic conditions) M. thermoacetica: Modified TGC medium, 55°C, 10 days (anaerobic conditions) D. nigrificans: Modified TGC medium, 55°C, 7 days (anaerobic conditions) G. stearothermophilus: Standard agar medium, 55°C, 4 days (aerobic conditions)

[0047] <Overall Rating> The overall evaluation of the bacteriostatic effect of microorganisms in the retort foods of the examples, comparative examples, and reference examples was as follows. The results are shown in Table 1. ○: All judgments 1-3 are "good," indicating excellent bacteriostatic activity. ×: At least one of the judgments 1-3 is "poor," indicating inferior bacteriostatic activity.

[0048] [2. Evaluation of texture] 70g of the food mixtures obtained in the examples and comparative examples were each placed in pouch containers with planar dimensions of 120mm x 130mm and sealed. Next, the sealed food mixtures were sterilized by retorting under the F0 value conditions shown in Table 1 below to obtain retort foods. These retort foods were heated to a temperature of 80°C and consumed by 10 expert panelists, who evaluated the texture according to the evaluation criteria shown below. The texture evaluation was conducted only on products that received a "○" overall evaluation in the [Microbial Bacteriostatic Evaluation] section, with the exception of Reference Example 1, which did not include meat or seafood. The results are shown in Table 1 below.

[0049] <Evaluation Criteria> ○: Offers excellent flavor and texture in meat and seafood, and is of superior food quality. ×: The ingredients, such as meat and seafood, have undergone significant heat denaturation, resulting in very poor food quality.

[0050] [Table 1]

[0051] [Table 2]

[0052] As shown in Table 1, the retort foods of the examples, which contain fatty acid esters and glycine in a suitable range, exhibit long-term and effective bacteriostatic activity against thermophilic bacteria, even without substantially containing lysozyme raw materials, compared to the retort foods of the comparative examples, thus maintaining the quality of the food for a long period. In particular, under the conditions of each example, bacteriostatic activity is maintained for a long period even when the pH is near neutral, where thermophilic bacteria tend to proliferate, which is advantageous because it allows for bacteriostatic activity against thermophilic bacteria regardless of the pH of the retort food. Furthermore, compared to the retort food of Comparative Example 7, the retort processing conditions of the examples are milder, so the meat and seafood included as solid ingredients are not excessively heat-denatured, and the good texture and flavor of the meat and seafood are maintained.

[0053] Furthermore, as shown in Table 1, the retort food in Reference Example 1 does not contain meat or seafood, so even when inoculated with thermophilic bacteria, the bacteria do not proliferate, and the good quality of the food is maintained. From these results, it can be inferred that the deterioration of retort food quality due to the proliferation of thermophilic bacteria is a problem specific to retort foods containing meat and seafood. In this regard, the manufacturing method of the present invention, as shown in the examples, makes it possible to produce retort food that solves the above problem without impairing the good texture and flavor of meat and seafood. [Industrial applicability]

[0054] According to the present invention, a retort food product is provided that can maintain the quality of food products including meat and seafood while being able to keep food poisoning bacteria, especially thermophilic bacteria, still for an extended period of time.

Claims

1. A method for producing a retort food containing a liquid portion and at least one of meat and seafood as a solid ingredient, wherein the solid ingredient has a maximum extension length of 1 mm or more and 30 mm or less and a minimum extension length of 1 mm or more and 30 mm or less, A food mixture is prepared that contains at least one type of meat and / or fish and shellfish, a liquid portion, 0.2% by mass or more and 0.5% by mass of fatty acid ester, and glycine, wherein the total content of meat and / or fish and shellfish and the content of glycine satisfy the relationship in (1) or (2) below, and which is substantially free of lysozyme raw materials, and then, The food mixture is sealed in packaging, and then, The sealed food mixture is 5 ≤ ​​F ０ Sterilization is performed under the condition of ≤50 to obtain retort food. A method for producing a retort food, wherein the fatty acid ester is at least one of sucrose fatty acid esters and glycerol fatty acid esters. (1) The total content of meat and seafood is 1 to 3% by mass, and the glycine content is 0.10% by mass or more and 0.50% by mass or less. (2) The total content of meat and seafood is greater than 3% by mass and 20% by mass or less, and the glycine content is 0.25% by mass or more and 2.0% by mass or less.

2. The method for producing a retort food according to claim 1, wherein the retort food is a pasta sauce.

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