Two-Phase Temperature Cooking to Reduce Smoke from Fat Breakdown
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Solution Overview
Problem
Cooking apparatuses generate excessive smoke due to fat breakdown during cooking, leading to off-putting odors and flavors in food, which is exacerbated by the smoke point of fats and oils being higher than 140°C, making it difficult to achieve proper doneness without smoke production.
Innovation Solution
A cooking apparatus with a heating system that controls the cooking chamber at a first temperature below 140°C for a majority of the cooking time and then at a higher temperature for a shorter remainder, based on inputted recipe parameters to manage energy requirements and cooking time, thereby reducing smoke production while ensuring food doneness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If cooking temperature is increased above 140°C to achieve proper doneness and taste, then cooking efficiency is improved, but smoke production increases due to fat breakdown
Solution Approach 1:
The cooking process is divided into two distinct temperature phases: a first phase at ≤140°C for the majority of cooking time to minimize smoke, and a second phase at higher temperature for a shorter remainder to achieve doneness and browning. This temporal segmentation resolves the contradiction by separating the smoke-generating high-temperature cooking from the smoke-minimizing low-temperature cooking.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooking apparatus dynamically adjusts temperature between two phases based on real-time monitoring. The system transitions from a low-temperature phase (≤140°C) that minimizes fat breakdown and smoke generation to a high-temperature phase that achieves proper doneness and browning, optimizing both smoke reduction and cooking effectiveness throughout the process.
2Object-generated harmful factors
If cooking temperature is limited to ≤140°C to reduce smoke production, then smoke generation is minimized, but cooking time must be extended to achieve doneness
Solution Approach 1:
The cooking process is segmented into a prolonged first phase at ≤140°C that minimizes smoke generation, followed by a shorter second phase at higher temperature that completes cooking efficiently. This segmentation allows the system to spend most time at low temperature (reducing cumulative smoke) while using brief high-temperature intervals to achieve doneness without excessive total cooking time.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooking process employs periodic temperature variation, alternating between extended periods at low temperature (≤140°C) for smoke reduction and brief periods at high temperature for efficient cooking completion. This periodic action pattern optimizes the balance between smoke generation and cooking time by rhythmically switching between smoke-minimizing and time-efficient phases.
3Ease of operation
If traditional single-temperature cooking is used to simplify operation, then ease of operation is maintained, but smoke production cannot be effectively controlled
Solution Approach 1:
The cooking apparatus autonomously manages the two-temperature cooking process without requiring manual intervention. The control system automatically transitions between the first phase (≤140°C) and second phase (higher temperature) based on pre-programmed logic, allowing users to simply select a cooking mode while the system handles the complex temperature sequencing and smoke control independently.
Solution Approach 2:
The system automatically changes temperature parameters between two distinct phases: maintaining temperature ≤140°C during the first phase to minimize smoke, then increasing to higher temperature during the second phase for browning and doneness. This automated parameter change resolves the contradiction by handling temperature control complexity internally while keeping the user interface simple.
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
This approach effectively minimizes smoke generation and its adverse effects on food odor and taste, maintaining the desired cooking results such as crispiness and browning, while ensuring the food is cooked to the required doneness without prolonging the cooking time excessively.
Implementation Method 1
Fan-assisted ovens and air fryers, for instance, cook food ingredients by convection
Implementation Method 2
half of the fries' weight may be required to be lost via evaporation of water during the frying
Implementation Method 3
Smoke generation during cooking with such cooking apparatuses can be problematic, and can create off-putting odors and flavours in the cooked food ingredients. Such smoke generation may be due to the breakdown of fat due to heat
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3A~3B
Figure 4A~4B
AI summary
Provided is a cooking apparatus (100) comprising a cooking chamber (102) for receiving food ingredients, and a heater (104) for heating the cooking chamber. The cooking apparatus also comprises an input arrangement (106) configured for inputting of at least one recipe parameter indicative of an energy requirement for cooking the food ingredients (103). One or more processors (108) is or are configured to control the heater to heat the cooking chamber at a first temperature less than or equal to 140°C for a fraction of a cooking time, and control the heater to heat the cooking chamber at a second temperature higher than 140°C for the remainder of the cooking time. The remainder is a further fraction of the cooking time which is less than the fraction. The one or more processors is or are configured to select the cooking time based on the at least one recipe parameter, the fraction of the cooking time at the first temperature, and the further fraction of the cooking time at the second temperature. Further provided is a method for operating a cooking apparatus, and a computer program for implementing the method.