Cooked Ham Production Using Multi-Needle Injection and Controlled Tumbling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for producing cooked ham often result in inconsistent product quality due to uneven brine distribution and suboptimal cooking techniques, leading to issues with flavor, texture, and preservation.
Innovation Solution
A method involving the injection of pork leg meat with a brine solution using a multi-needle injector, followed by tumbling and cooking in a cooking shrink bag or thermoformed plastic film, to ensure uniform brine distribution and optimized flavor infusion, texture, and moisture retention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional brining methods are used, then the process is simple, but brine distribution is uneven leading to inconsistent product quality
Solution Approach 1:
The brine injection system is segmented into multiple injection points distributed throughout the pork leg meat. The multi-needle injector creates numerous small injection sites rather than relying on a single injection method, ensuring uniform brine distribution throughout the meat mass and eliminating the unevenness associated with conventional brining approaches.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a multi-needle injector that utilizes hydraulic principles to deliver brine solution under controlled pressure throughout the meat. The injection system uses fluid dynamics to ensure consistent brine distribution, with the brine solution being forced through multiple needles into the meat tissue, achieving uniform penetration and distribution that conventional methods cannot achieve.
2Manufacturing precision
If conventional cooking techniques are used, then the process is straightforward, but product quality and texture are suboptimal
Solution Approach 1:
The cooking process employs precisely controlled temperature parameters, maintaining the cooking temperature between 60-70°C throughout the cooking period. This temperature control parameter change ensures consistent cooking results and optimal texture development, while the extended cooking time of 8-12 hours allows for uniform heat penetration and quality enhancement without requiring complex multi-stage cooking systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The meat is injected with brine solution before cooking, performing a preliminary action that prepares the meat for optimal cooking results. The brine injection occurs prior to cooking, allowing the meat to absorb and retain moisture during the subsequent cooking process, thereby improving texture and flavor consistency without adding complexity to the cooking system itself.
3Reliability
If traditional ham production methods are used, then production is efficient, but flavor infusion and preservation are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The brine injection is performed as a preliminary action before cooking, allowing the meat to absorb and retain flavor-enhancing brine solution throughout the cooking process. This preliminary brine infusion ensures consistent flavor penetration and improved preservation qualities while maintaining efficient production timing, as the brine preparation and injection occur in advance of the cooking step.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The method achieves consistently excellent product quality by ensuring uniform flavor distribution, optimal texture, and enhanced overall quality of the cooked ham, while maintaining food safety and efficient production.
Implementation Method 1
injecting pork leg meat with a brine solution comprising water and salt, wherein said injection of brine occurs by means of a multi-needle injector
Implementation Method 2
after which said brine-injected meat is tumbled
Implementation Method 3
subsequently cooked in a cooking shrink bag or thermoformed plastic film, thereby forming the cooked ham
Data Source
AI summary
The current invention relates to a method for the industrial production of cooked ham, wherein said method comprises a step of injecting pork leg meat with a brine solution comprising water and salt, wherein said water is ice water at a temperature of between 2 and 6°C, wherein said injection of brine occurs by means of a multineedle injector, after which said brine-injected meat is tumbled for at least 3 hours in a tumbler at a temperature of 7 °C or less and subsequently cooked in a cooking shrink bag or thermoformed plastic film for 9 to 15 hours, thereby forming the cooked ham. The current invention also relates to cooked ham produced via said method for the industrial production of cooked ham.