Snack Chip Dough Drying and Cooking Process
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing snack products made from non-starch ingredients like fruits, vegetables, meats, and dairy struggle to maintain authentic flavor and nutritional value due to high processing temperatures, preservatives, and textural issues, resulting in products that are often low in these ingredients and high in artificial flavors and off-flavors.
Innovation Solution
A method of forming a sheetable dough with high concentrations of non-starch ingredients, dried at low temperatures to create a shelf-stable 'half-product' that can be cooked later by baking, frying, or microwaving, retaining natural flavors and nutritional benefits without the need for artificial additives.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If high processing temperatures and long cooking times are used to produce crisp snack products, then the crispiness and shelf stability are improved, but the authentic flavor and nutritional value of non-starch ingredients are degraded
Solution Approach 1:
The non-starch ingredients are pre-cooked separately under gentle conditions (steam, water, or microwave) to develop their authentic flavor and nutritional properties before being incorporated into the dough. This preliminary action preserves the delicate flavors and nutrients that would otherwise be destroyed by high-temperature processing of the final snack product.
Solution Approach 2:
The processing is divided into separate stages: (1) pre-cooking non-starch ingredients independently, (2) mixing into dough, (3) forming sheets, and (4) final cooking. This segmentation allows each ingredient to be treated according to its specific requirements, preserving authentic flavors while achieving the desired crisp texture in the final product.
2Quantity of substance
If high concentrations of non-starch ingredients are used in the dough, then the nutritional value and authentic flavor are improved, but the dough becomes difficult to form and process
Solution Approach 1:
The formulation parameters are optimized to achieve a balance between high non-starch ingredient content and dough processability. Specific ratios of starch to non-starch ingredients are used, along with controlled moisture content and optional binders, to create a dough that maintains high nutritional value while remaining sufficiently cohesive for sheeting and processing.
Solution Approach 2:
Starch components serve as an intermediary matrix that binds the high concentration of non-starch ingredients into a processable dough. The starch provides structural continuity and workability, allowing the dough to be formed into sheets while maintaining high levels of fruits, vegetables, proteins, or other nutritional additives.
3Strength
If traditional frying or baking methods are used to achieve crispiness, then the texture is improved, but the fat content and calorie count increase
Solution Approach 1:
The snack pieces are frozen before the final cooking step. This phase transition creates internal ice crystals that, when rapidly heated during the final cook, generate steam pressure that puffs and crisps the product from within. This mechanism achieves crispiness similar to frying but without the high fat absorption, resulting in lower calorie content.
Solution Approach 2:
The traditional mechanical frying process (submersion in hot oil) is replaced with a combination of freezing and rapid heating methods. This substitution uses thermal phase changes and steam generation instead of oil immersion to achieve the desired crisp texture, significantly reducing fat content while maintaining consumer-acceptable texture.
4Duration of action of stationary object
If preservatives and artificial flavors are added to maintain shelf stability and flavor, then the shelf life is improved, but the authenticity and naturalness of the product are degraded
Solution Approach 1:
The high moisture content of fresh non-starch ingredients, which normally promotes spoilage, is converted into a benefit through freezing. The frozen state preserves the authentic flavor and nutritional properties during storage, and the subsequent rapid heating during final cooking creates the desired crisp texture. This approach extends shelf life while maintaining naturalness without requiring preservatives.
Solution Approach 2:
The non-starch ingredients are pre-cooked and incorporated into the dough before the final product formation. This preliminary cooking develops the authentic flavors and nutritional properties that would otherwise be lost during final high-temperature processing. The pre-cooked ingredients are then frozen to preserve these qualities during storage, eliminating the need for artificial flavors and preservatives.
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 solution allows for snack chips with high concentrations of fruits, vegetables, and proteins to be produced with authentic flavors and nutritional benefits, providing a crispy texture and appealing appearance while being low in fat and off-flavors, and meeting nutritional serving guidelines in a single serving.
Implementation Method 1
The dough is dried at a temperature of less than about 121°C (250°F) to form a half product
Implementation Method 2
The half product can be cooked immediately after the drying process to form the snack chip by baking, frying in oil, vacuum, microwave and mixtures of these methods
Implementation Method 3
The half product can be cooked immediately after the drying process to form the snack chip by baking, frying in oil, vacuum, microwave and mixtures of these methods
Data Source
AI summary
A snack chip comprising from about 15% to about 60% of vegetable material; from about 40% to about 65% of starch material made from materials selected from the group consisting of tapioca, rice and mixtures thereof; from about 0.1% to about 5.0% water; and from about 1% to about 20% of optional ingredients. At least about 40% of the starch material is pre-gelatinized. The snack chip is made by combining the vegetable material and dry ingredients with water to form a dough which is then sheeted, dried without the use of a heated extruder to form a half product, which is cooked to form the snack chip.