THE METHOD FOR FINAL TREATMENT OF PRECOOKED LEGUMINOUS PLANTS AND CEREALS

Abstract: The method for final treatment of precooked leguminous plants and cereals, without subsequent drying and without use of chemical and stabilizing additives, in which the dry fruits are cleared of surface impurities by rinsing previously. They are soaked in cold water free of chemical additives during the period of 3 to 30 hours. The fruits, treated in such a way, are exposed to the environment of electromagnetic waves at frequency of 2,450 MHz, power of 750 W at least and temperature over 100 DEG C during the time period of 10 to 25 minutes. After removal from the microwave environment and after subsequent dripping of water at temperature of +40 DEG C to+60 DEG C said fruits are cooled down by shock freezing to temperature below -18 DEG C and packed afterwards.

Description: The method for final treatment of precooked leguminous plants and cereals Field of Technique The invention relates to a method to produce precooked leguminous plants and cereals without successive drying and use of chemical and stabilizing additives. State of the prior art Hitherto known methods to prepare leguminous plants and, cereals, recently as food, contain soaking - swelling up of fruits, cooking or partial cooking of them and mostly expensive subsequent dehydratation before storage and distribution for a consumer. The method is known to produce fast rehydrating leguminous plants, according to the European patent published as the Czech invention application no. PV 2100-96 in which leguminous plants are cooked in vapour under pressure, then cooled down by locating in vacuum and dried afterwards. Disadvantageous^, the final drying and cooking in vapour is expensive as for energy and time consumption with the fruit hardness being non-uniform after all. Further disadvantage of this method is due to the fact that a part of fruits cracks after finishing with the appearance of fruits being damaged. An analogous solution for production of precooked leguminous plants is known in which the finished leguminous plants are packed in vacuum at underpressure of- 0,9 Atm into bags, pertaining to boiling, the permeability of which is 100 μm at least. This solution is the subject of the Czech invention application no. PV 4064-98. Disadvantage of this solution is due short guarantee period ( 15 days). Substance of the invention The invention solves the method for finishing the precooked leguminous plants and cereals without subsequent drying and without use of chemical and stabilizing additives. First of all, in this process the dry fruits get clear of surface impurities by rinsing and then, during a period of 3 to 30 hours, they are soaked in cold water which is free of chemical additives. The substance of the invention is rooted in that the fruits, finished in such a way, are exposed to the environment of electromagnetic waves at frequency of 2 450 MHz, power of 750 W at least and themperature over + 100 °C and after the extraction from the microwave environment and following water dripping carried out at temperature of +40 to +60 °C the fruits are cooled down by shock freezing by nitrogen to temperature below - 18 °C. After that the fruits are packed. The advantage of the solution consists in fast heating of leguminous plants in microwave environment because 1heγ contain more than 50 % of water distributed in whole fruit mass after soaking. By means of this methode the energy and time consumption for drying is saved and the mass of every fruit gets uniformly softened in addition to it. Other advantage is in that the way of fruit treatment without any chemical compound where the finishing consists in deep fruit freezing mostly by means of a nitrogen. The food product, as finished in such a way, enlarges the food supply for people fuffering with diabetes. In this way of treatment, every sort of leguminous plant keeps its colour and shape and neither husk cracking nor separation occurs. Prior to packing the deeply frozen fruits can be mutually mixed and mixtures can be created according to required flavour. Even partial amounts can be separated without terms expiration. Examples on the invention embodiment Example no. 1 For the method for finishing the precooked leguminous plants and cereals conformably to the invention the lentils have been used which were cleared of surface impurities by water rinsing in advance. Then they were soaked in water without chemical additives at temperature of 12 to 15 °C during the time period of 3 hours. After removal of the water rest and after soaking the fruits were treated in a microwave oven according to the invention conditions, i.e. in the environment of electromagnetic waves at frequency of 2 450 MHz and power of 750 W and temperature over 100 °C. The treatment lasts 8 minutes. Afterwards the lentils, situated in food crates with bottom openings, were cleared of free water and, at temperature of + 40 to + 60 °C, exposed to shock freezing by passage throuh a freezing tunnel to temperature of - 20 °C in nitrogene atmosphere and with such band shift velocity for the whole fruit volume to be freezed. Further the lentils were packed in requested volume into bags with wall permeability of 90 μm. Example no. 2 The peeled yellow peas have been produced by the method of the invention. These leguminous plants were soaked during 12 hours. Afterwards, they were exposed to the environment of electromagnetic waves at frequency of 2 450 MHz and power of 800 W in a microwave oven during a period of 15 minutes and at temperature over 100 °C. Subsequently, they were cleared of excessive water and freezed by the process conformable to that of the foregoing paragraph They were packed into bags with wall permeability of 90 μm. Example no. 3 In a similar way the cereals, more exactly the peeled oats, were treated. They were soaked during 24 hours and were located in a microwave environment during the period of 20 minutes under conditions identical to those of the preceding example. After cooling down to 55 °C and excessive water removal they were cooled down by shock freezing to temperature of- 21 °C by passage through a tunnel in nitrogene environment. Than they were packed into polypropylene bags. As finished in such a way, the leguminous plants and cereals do not loose the original appearance and if located in a transparent wrapping they form a varied offer of alimentary products. Possibility for use in industry The proposed solution can be utilized in alimentary industry to treat all sorts of leguminous plants and cereals. The products have a great number of mutual combinations of sorts and interesting colours.

Claims: P A TENT C L A IM S 1. The method for final treatment of precooked leguminous plants and cereals, without subsequent drying and without use of chemical and stabilizing additives, in which the dry fruits are cleared of surface impurities by rinsing previously after which they are soaked in cold water free of chemical additives during the period of 3 to 30 hours, characterized in that, said fruits, treated in such a way, are exposed to the environment of electromagnetic waves at frequency of 2 450 MHz, power of 750 W at least and temperature over 100 °C during the time period of 10 to 25 minutes, and after removal from the microwave environment and after subsequent dripping of water at temperature of + 40 °C to + 60 °C said fruits are cooled down by shock freezing to temperature below - 18 °C and packed afterwards.

Inventors: KEPKA Roman, KEPKA, ROMAN
Applicants: KEPKA Roman, KEPKA, ROMAN
Application year: 2000
Main classification: A23L1
IPC codes: A23B7, A23B9, A23L1