JP7510146B2 - Fruit processed products and their manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a processed fruit product and a method for producing the same.

The fruit is rich in vitamins and other nutrients, and is known to contain a lot of nutrients and aromatic components, especially around the skin. It is nutritious and delicious, making it a popular choice, but because it spoils easily, it has long been used in dried form.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method for producing apple powder that can eliminate bitterness and astringency and increase sugar content without removing the outer skin or seeds of the apples used as raw materials, the method including a comminuting step and a ripening step for promoting enzymatic decomposition. Patent Document 2 discloses a method for producing a processed fruit product in which cellulose is added to a pureed fruit raw material, which is then filled into a mold tray and freeze-dried.

JP 2019-198232 A Japanese Patent No. 4217080

In the process of processing fruit, the flavor of the fruit itself is lost and problems such as browning are likely to occur, so additives have been used as necessary for processing. The present invention aims to provide a safer and more natural processed product by not using additives, and also provides a production method and processed product that can suppress browning, retain the flavor of the fruit itself, and contain a large amount of nutrients.

As a result of research aimed at solving the above-mentioned problems, the inventors discovered that by heating the fruit, turning it into a paste including the skin, packing it into a molding tray, freezing it, and drying it under reduced pressure, it is possible to produce a dried product that allows the flavor of the fruit itself to be enjoyed by inactivating the enzymes and suppressing browning while minimizing thermal damage, thus arriving at the present invention.

That is, the present invention relates to the following aspects [1] to [4].
[1] A method for producing a dried fruit paste mass, comprising heating the fruit, turning it into a paste including the skin, filling it into a molding tray, freezing it, and drying it under reduced pressure.
[2] The manufacturing method described in [1], which includes a step of removing inedible parts of fruit other than the skin.
[3] The method according to [1] or [2], wherein heating is performed at 100° C. or less.
[4] A dried fruit paste mass obtained by the manufacturing method described in any one of [1] to [3].

According to the present invention, the enzymes are inactivated by heating, so that the natural color of the fruit can be maintained without browning, and the sweetness can be increased. Furthermore, by forming the fruit into a paste after heating, heat damage can be minimized and the flavor of the fruit can be maintained. By dissolving the fruit in water and eating it, it is possible to enjoy a taste like grated fruit, which is even more delicious than fresh fruit. In addition, since the product can be sterilized by including a heating process, there is no need to worry about contamination by microorganisms, and no additives are required, so even infants and the elderly can eat the product with peace of mind. In addition, since the product is in a lump form, it is less hygroscopic and has good solubility in water.

The dried fruit paste mass of the present invention is obtained by heating the fruit, turning it into a paste including the skin, filling it into a molding tray, freezing it, and drying it under reduced pressure.

The fruit used in the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it is a fruit, and may be either a fruit or a vegetable, and is preferably at least one selected from the group consisting of apple, pear, European pear, kiwi, persimmon, peach, loquat, pineapple, grape, fig, blueberry, mango, papaya, banana, melon, strawberry, watermelon and tomato, and is used after washing.

The heating method of the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it can inactivate the enzymes in the fruit and does not cause severe deterioration of flavor due to heating, but for example, it can be performed by heating by boiling or steaming in warm water, and the temperature of the warm water or steam is preferably 100° C. or less, more preferably 90 to 95° C., and it is preferable to heat so that the temperature of the center of the fruit is preferably about 60 to 95° C., more preferably about 70 to 90° C., and even more preferably about 80 to 85° C. Heating can suppress the number of bacteria on the surface of the fruit and increase the sweetness, and furthermore, by inactivating the enzymes, browning of the fruit can be suppressed and the original color of the fruit can be maintained. Moreover, by not heating the temperature too high, flavor deterioration can be suppressed and the flavor of the fruit can be maintained.

Heating can be performed with the skin on, and the nutritional components that are abundant near the skin can be retained while suppressing the outflow of fruit components. The less the fruit components are outflowed during heating, the better, and by suppressing the outflow of components, the nutritional components and taste of the fruit can be maintained. When the surface area of the fruit mass during heating is 100%, the part covered with the skin is preferably 50% or more, more preferably 60% or more, even more preferably 70% or more, particularly preferably 80% or more, and most preferably 90% or more. In addition, fruits without skin such as strawberries correspond to the part where the outer surface is covered with the skin. It can be performed by heating the fruit as it is in hot water by boiling or steaming, or by heating the fruit by boiling or steaming in hot water after removing inedible parts other than the skin such as the stem, seeds, and stem. It is necessary to heat it before making it into a paste, and heating after shredding is inappropriate.

The inedible parts other than the skin refer to parts that are not normally eaten, such as seeds, stems, and stalks. For example, seeds that can be normally eaten, such as seeds of kiwi, blueberries, strawberries, and tomatoes, and the core of pineapple do not fall under the category of inedible parts other than the skin, and do not need to be removed in the manufacturing process. For example, fruits that can be eaten in their entirety, such as blueberries, and fruits that can be eaten by removing only the skin, such as figs, do not require the removal process, and this process is only performed on fruits that have inedible parts other than the skin. The removal method is not particularly limited as long as the inedible parts can be removed, and can be performed mechanically, such as by removing them manually or by using a core remover or strainer. The removal process is preferably performed before or after heating depending on the fruit. For example, in fruits such as apples and pears, in which the inedible parts can be easily removed without cutting the flesh into small pieces and in which the loss of components is relatively small when heated after removal, the inedible parts can be removed before heating, while in fruits such as persimmons and pears, in which the seeds are scattered throughout the fruit, and in fruits such as melons in which the loss of components is likely to occur from the cut surface, the removal must be performed after heating. Even in the case of fruits that lose relatively little components when heated, it is preferable to limit cutting before heating to the minimum necessary to remove inedible parts.

In the present invention, after heating, the skin and the like may be made into a paste, which can be done using a mesh, mincer, mixer, chopper, etc. There are no particular limitations on the length of the skin pieces as long as it is easy to homogenize and fill trays and the skin is not unpleasant to eat, but it is preferable that the length of the skin pieces is 2 mm or less, more preferably 1 mm or less, even more preferably 0.5 mm or less, and particularly preferably 0.1 mm or less.

Water may be added before or after making into a paste, but if the weight of the fruit after heating is taken as 100% by weight, the water content is preferably 20% by weight or less, more preferably 10% by weight or less, more preferably 5% by weight or less, and even more preferably no water is added.

The molded tray used in the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it can freeze the fruit paste, and rectangular, cylindrical, spherical, heart-shaped, star-shaped, plate-shaped, etc. can be used as appropriate, but the tray may be dried as is after freezing, or the frozen product may be crushed and then dried. The frozen product to be dried is not particularly limited as long as it is ¹ mm3 or more, and for example, in the case of a rectangular parallelepiped, it is preferable to use a tray with a side of 5 to 100 mm, more preferably 10 to 80 mm, and a depth of about 5 to 50 mm.

In the present invention, freeze-drying may be performed according to a conventional method, for example, by filling a molding tray with the fruit paste, pre-freezing it, and then drying it under reduced pressure (vacuum), with the product temperature at the start of drying being preferably −25 to −10° C., more preferably −20 to −15° C. The air pressure in the closed system during the reduced pressure is preferably 250 Pa or less, more preferably 20 to 100 Pa, and even more preferably 100 Pa or less.

The fruit paste dry mass of the present invention is obtained by the above-mentioned method, and is not particularly limited as long as it is a dry mass of ¹ mm3 or more, but a powder form is not suitable because it is easily absorbed moisture. It can be used in various foods. It is not particularly limited as long as it is a food that uses fruit and is eaten, but for example, it may be dissolved in water, hot water, carbonated water, soft drinks, etc. and eaten, and can be used for weaning food and nursing food. It can also be used for dressings, sauces, curries, soups, sweets, etc.

The present invention will be specifically described below with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited to the following examples. In the present invention, the percentages of each raw material and ingredient are all by weight unless otherwise specified. All molded drying trays were 67 mm x 38 mm x 22 mm in size.

After washing, the stems and cores containing seeds were removed, and then 1 kg of fresh apples, which had been cut in half to confirm that the seeds had been removed, were heated in 1.6 L of hot water at 90°C or higher for 12 minutes until the core temperature reached 80°C or higher, and then crushed in a mixer to form a paste, which was then strained through a mesh with 1 mm openings, packed into a tray for molding and drying, frozen, and then freeze-dried in the usual manner to obtain 142 g of block-shaped dried apple paste mass. The production conditions and the yield of the dried mass per 1 kg of fresh apples are summarized in Table 1. The Bx of the water after the heat treatment was 0.9, and the weight after freezing was 937 g.

[Comparative Example 1]
(Skin removed)
After washing, the stems and cores containing seeds were removed, and the apples were cut in half to confirm that the seeds had been removed. 1 kg of peeled fresh apples was then treated in the same manner as in Example 1 to obtain 136 g of a block-shaped dried apple paste mass. The production conditions and the yield of the dried mass per 1 kg of fresh apples are summarized in Table 1. The Bx of the water after the heat treatment was 2.2, and the weight after freezing was 875 g.

[Comparative Example 2]
(Heat after pasting)
After washing, the stems and cores containing seeds were removed, and 1 kg of fresh apples, which had been cut in half to confirm that the seeds had been removed, were pulverized in a mixer to form a paste, which was then heated in a hot water bath for 12 minutes so that the product temperature was 80°C or higher, strained through a mesh with 1 mm openings, packed into a tray for molding and drying, frozen, and then freeze-dried in the usual manner to obtain 157 g of a block-shaped dried apple paste mass. The production conditions and the yield of the dried mass per 1 kg of fresh apples are summarized in Table 1. The weight after freezing was 1 kg.

[Comparative Example 3]
(Unheated)
After washing, the stems and cores containing seeds were removed, and 1 kg of fresh apples, which had been cut in half to confirm that the seeds had been removed, were pulverized in a mixer to form a paste, strained through a mesh with 1 mm openings, packed into a tray for molding and drying, frozen, and then freeze-dried in the usual way to obtain 144 g of block-shaped dried apple paste mass. The production conditions and the yield of the dried mass per 1 kg of fresh apples are summarized in Table 1. The weight after freezing was 1 kg.
In addition, the paste before freezing was treated as grated fresh apple with skin (unprocessed product 1), and the production conditions and Bx are summarized in Table 1.

[Comparative Example 4]
(skin removed, uncooked)
After washing, the stem and core including seeds were removed, and the apples were cut in half to confirm the removal of the seeds. 1 kg of peeled fresh apples was then crushed in a mixer to make a paste, which was then strained through a mesh with 1 mm openings, packed into a tray for molding and drying, frozen, and then freeze-dried in the usual manner to obtain 143 g of a block-shaped dried apple paste mass. The production conditions and the yield of the dried mass per 1 kg of fresh apples are summarized in Table 1. The weight after freezing was 1 kg.
In addition, the paste before freezing was treated as grated fresh apple without skin (unprocessed product 2), and the production conditions and Bx are summarized in Table 1.

[Evaluation test]
7 g of each of the dried apple paste blocks of Example 1 and Comparative Examples 1 to 4 was dissolved in 100 g of water to prepare the samples for evaluation, and the color of the dried block before dissolution, the color of the liquid after dissolution, and the taste are summarized in Table 1. All samples had good solubility. In addition, raw products 1 (with skin) and 2 (without skin) were also evaluated as simply grated fresh apples. In order to match the concentration of the dried block after dissolution, water was added to each raw product to prepare the samples for evaluation, and the taste is summarized in Table 1. The taste was evaluated as follows: ○: noticeable, △: slightly noticeable, ×: not noticeable for apple flavor, sweetness, sourness, grassy odor, and astringency.

In addition, the block-shaped dried apple paste of Example 1 and a powder obtained by pulverizing the dried paste to a size of 1 mm or less were left on a medicine wrapping paper for 20 minutes at a humidity of 30% to check the moisture absorption state.

The freezing property in each production process was evaluated as ◯: good, △: slightly bad, ×: bad, and the drying property was evaluated as ◎: very good, ◯: good, △: slightly bad, ×: bad. The results are summarized in Table 1.

As shown in Table 1, the dried block of Example 1, which was made by removing inedible parts other than the skin from apples, heating them, forming them into a paste with the skin on, filling a molding tray, freezing it, and drying it under reduced pressure, had a light pink color due to the skin and no browning was observed. After dissolving, it had a sweet and slightly sour apple flavor, and was very delicious with no green odor that would be derived from the skin.

On the other hand, the dried block of Comparative Example 1, which was treated after removing the skin, did not brown, was light yellow, which is the color of apples, and after dissolving, it had a slightly sweet apple taste, but no sourness was felt, and the taste was generally weak. This was thought to be due to the fact that the Bx of the water after heat treatment was about 2.4 times higher than that of Example 1, which indicates that the water-soluble solid content in the apples was peeled and boiled, and the water-soluble solid content in the apples was about 2.4 times more water-soluble than that of Example 1. In addition, the dried block of Comparative Example 2, which was heated after being made into a paste, browned, and the taste after dissolving was also slightly sweet, but the apple flavor was faint, and there was also a slight grassy smell. Browning is a phenomenon that generally occurs when the cut surface comes into contact with air, and therefore it is thought that the enzyme reaction has progressed by making it into a paste before heating, which increases the contact surface with air, and the flavor is lost by heating in a paste state, and furthermore, it is thought that the grassy smell derived from the skin is expressed by shredding the skin in a raw state. Furthermore, the non-heated dried block of Comparative Example 3 was severely browned, and the taste after dissolving was slightly sweet and sour, but the apple flavor was weak, and there was a grassy odor and astringency. This is thought to be because the enzyme was not inactivated without heating, and browning progressed further, and the skin was cut into strips in a raw state and not heated thereafter, resulting in an unpleasant grassy odor and astringency, and the flavor itself was weakened. The dried block of Comparative Example 4 was severely browned, and the taste after dissolving was slightly sour, but the apple flavor was weak, and there was no sweetness. This is thought to be because the enzyme was not inactivated without heating as in Comparative Example 3, and browning progressed further, but since there was no skin, the unpleasant grassy odor and astringency were not felt, but instead, the sweetness was not felt.

In addition, raw apples 1 (with skin) and 2 (without skin), which were evaluated simply as grated fresh apples, both had a weak apple flavor and no sweetness. Furthermore, raw apple 1 had a sour taste, a grassy smell, and an astringent taste, while raw apple 2, which does not have the skin, did not have an unpleasant grassy smell or astringent taste, but it did have a slightly sour taste.

From the above, it was found that processing the apples with the skin on not only allows the final product to contain more of the nutritional components that are abundant near the skin, but the presence of the skin also prevents the loss of water-soluble solids in the fruit, preserving the flavor well. It was also found that heating the fruit can be sterilized and enhances the sweetness. It was also found that heating the fruit before making it into a paste inactivates enzymes at a stage when the contact surface between the inside of the fruit and the air is small, preventing browning and suppressing deterioration of flavor, and resulting in a product without a grassy smell or astringency, resulting in an even more delicious taste than grated fresh apples.

Furthermore, if the material was dried and then crushed, the fine powder would absorb moisture and harden, so it was found that it was better to leave the material in a lump state rather than crushing it into a powder after drying.

In terms of the manufacturing process, it was found that Example 1 had the best freezing and drying properties, allowing the dried fruit paste block of the present invention to be produced efficiently and easily.

Fresh pears were used and treated in the same manner as in Example 1 to obtain a block-shaped dried mass of pear paste. When 7 g of the dried product was dissolved in 100 g of water, it had good solubility and a sweet pear flavor.

After washing, fresh kiwi fruit with the stem removed was used to obtain a block-shaped dried mass of kiwi paste in the same manner as in Example 1. When 7 g of the dried product was dissolved in 100 g of water, it had good solubility and a sweet kiwi flavor.

Claims (4)

This method for producing a dried mass of fruit paste comprises heating the fruit, forming it into a paste including the skin, filling it into a molding tray, freezing it, and drying it under reduced pressure. The method according to claim 1, further comprising a step of removing inedible parts of fruit other than the skin. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein heating is performed at 100° C. or less. A dried fruit paste mass obtained by the method according to any one of claims 1 to 3.