Patent ID: 7374579

Claim:
A system for extruding, cutting into strands, freezing, and chopping a ground food product, comprising: a cooling unit comprising an enclosure and having an inlet and an outlet, a conveyor belt for continuously urging extruded and stranded pieces of the ground food product from said inlet through a cooling region in said enclosure and out of the outlet when the conveyor belt is rotating, and a cryogen source for feeding cryogen into said cooling region, wherein said cryogen source is adapted to dispense the cryogen at a flow rate sufficient to lower the temperature of the extruded and stranded pieces to a desired temperature at or below freezing when they exit the outlet of the enclosure; a feeder for receiving and feeding continuously the ground food product onto the conveyor belt adjacent said inlet of the enclosure, the feeder having a hopper for holding a supply of the ground food product and a nozzle having a plurality of holes through which the ground food product is extruded onto the conveyor belt, and a shearing plate provided to cut extruded pieces of the ground food product, while being extruded, into strands; an actuator system for moving the shearing plate in order to cut the extruded pieces of the ground food product; and a chopper provided adjacent the outlet of the enclosure and feed by said conveyor belt for chopping the extruded and stranded pieces of the food product after passing through the cooling region of the enclosure.