Patent ID: 6777011
Filing Date: 2004-08-17
Classification: A21D,A23K,A23L,A23P

Abstract:
A continuous process for producing a multi-layer food product, which process comprises the steps of:providing a dry mix material; providing a liquid adapted for combining with said dry mix material; combining a first quantity of said dry mix material and said liquid and thereby forming a slurry; cooking the slurry in a first cooking unit; providing a first slurry stream from said first cooking unit and adding a first additive thereto and thereby forming a first ingredient consisting of said slurry combined with said first additive; providing a second slurry stream from said first cooking unit and adding a second additive thereto and thereby forming a second ingredient consisting of said slurry combined with said second additive; combining a second quantity of said dry mix material with a meat additive to provide a meat ingredient; flowing said meat ingredient in a meat ingredient stream; providing a second cooking unit with a die including inputs for said first, second and meat ingredients and outputs for two streams of said first ingredient, a stream of said second ingredient and a stream of said meat ingredient; flowing said first, second and meat ingredients into said respective die inputs in said die; providing said die with a separator plate associated with said second and meat ingredient inputs; cooking and splitting said first ingredient stream in said die into a pair of first ingredient output streams located on opposite sides of said second and meat ingredient streams; outputting said second and meat ingredients through said separator plate in said die between said pair of first ingredient output streams; combining said pair of first material output streams with said second and meat ingredient output streams in overlying relation in a multi-layered output; providing a rotating knife on a downstream end of said second cooking unit die; and slicing said multi-layered output into respective, discrete, multi-layered product units with said rotating knife.