FROZEN NOODLES AND THE METHOD OF PRODUCING THEM

Abstract

The term refers to frozen noodles, which include frozen noodle strands obtained by freezing cooked products from fresh noodles. These frozen noodle strands include characteristic frozen noodle strands, in which each characteristic frozen noodle strand has a cross-section perpendicular to its longitudinal direction, with a maximum cross-sectional size of 1.2 mm or larger. The characteristic frozen noodle strands become characteristic noodle strands when thawed. These characteristic noodle strands have a percentage deformation at break ranging from 70% to 85% and a tensile load ranging from 0.7 to 4.0 N, as determined by a fracture test using a rheometer fitted with a bushing under conditions where the product temperature of the characteristic noodle strands is 40°C and the bushing's pushing speed is 0.5 nm / second.The method of producing frozen noodles according to the invention differs in that it satisfies at least one of the following conditions (1) and (2): (I) the noodle dough preparation step is carried out in a pressure-depressurized environment with a pressure drop of less than or equal to -0.03 MPa; and (2) the number of times the noodle dough is rolled in the rolling step is equal to or less than two.