The invention relates to a process and composition for preparing plant-based food products, such as vegan food products.
In modern society, people are adopting a variety of eating lifestyles, one of them eating vegan food. People adopting a vegan lifestyle eliminate animal-derived food products from their food. Consumers are increasingly becoming aware of foods that they ingest and developing increasing awareness about the manner in which foods are produced. This increased awareness and search for alternate food options without compromising color, texture, taste, or looks of meat like food products is expanding research areas as companies are exploring protein sources available from plants, alternate vegetarian sources, or other non-meat sources. However, any such plant-based food products or vegan food products lack texture, taste, structure, or color compared to meat-based food products or animal-based food products. The consumer either goes back to eating meat products or compromises with the taste and texture and adjusts their eating habits.
The present disclosure addresses these problems and provides a composition and a process of preparing plant-based food products such as a vegan food product with a texture, color, or appearance mirroring a meat food product.
In summary, provided herein is a process of making a plant-based food product, such as a vegan food product, its processing and composition. More particularly, provided herein is a process and a composition of making a plant-based food product, such as a vegan food product mirroring a meat-based food product in appearance, taste, color, or texture.
In various embodiments, provided herein is a method of processing a plant-based food product, comprising: providing a batch of material comprising at least a plant protein and at least an aqueous phase, preferably water, introduced simultaneously into a mixer, wherein the mixer blends the plant protein and water forming a dough which is dry and crumbly with air trapped within; feeding the dough through a feeding side of an extruder via a sausage filler, wherein the use of the sausage filler forms a closed system preventing air from the dough from leaving the system and back into the feeding side; subjecting the dough to a high moisture extrusion (HME) process forming HME material; optionally providing at least an ingredient in a cooking tumbler to add flavor, texture, nutrients, taste, or color to the HME material, wherein the ingredient may be added after cutting the HME material; and cutting the HME material in chunks of any shape or size, wherein the HME material may be a component for making a plant-based food product or used directly as a final food product. The HME material is processed dough, wherein the dough fed into the extruder undergoes HME process and is processed for preparing plant-based food product.
In various other embodiments, the method further comprises: passing the HME material through a cooling die; cutting the HME materials into chunks, heating the chunks, wherein the HME material in the form of chunks may be heated at a temperature of at least 80° C. or more than 80° C.; freezing the HME material as chunks, wherein the HME material is freeze using IQF-freezing for preservation, packaging, and transportation; and packaging the HME material in a packaging tray in the presence of at least a protective gas, wherein the HME material may be a component for making a plant-based food product or used directly as a final food product.
In many embodiments, the process further comprises: optionally mixing at least an ingredient in a cooking tumbler to add flavor, texture, taste, or color to the HME material, passing the HME material cut as chunks through a cooling die; freezing the chunks using IQF-freezing or another known freezing method for preservation and transportation of the material; and packaging the chunks in the presence of protective gas, wherein the chunks may be a component for producing a plant-based food product or directly as a plant-based food product.
In many embodiments, the dough formed after mixing the batch of plant protein and water simultaneously within the mixer is further processed via the HME process, wherein the dough is fed into an extruder via a sausage filler. Use of the sausage filler forms a closed system trapping the air within the dough, and as the dough is processed via the extrusion process, air bubbles within the dough are homogeneously distributed throughout, providing sponginess or fluffiness, a texture, or color to the HME material without changing or altering the fiber structure of plant protein such that the HME material mirrors the meat-based food product.
In other embodiments, HME material prepared by the disclosed method is dry, crumbly, and spongy compared to the material prepared without following the disclosed method.
In various embodiments, plant protein and water are mixed in a ratio of 1:1.
In many embodiments, plant protein may be a soy protein, a pea protein, a wheat protein, milk protein, a protein powder blend, a vegetable protein, or other plant sourced protein comprising a high fiber content or a low fiber content. In many other embodiments, the plant-based food product is a vegan or a non-meat food product.
In various embodiments, provided herein is a batch mixing method of processing a plant-based food product, comprising: providing a batch of material comprising at least a plant protein and at least an aqueous phase, preferably water introduced simultaneously into a mixer, wherein the mixer blends the plant protein and water forming a dough which is dry and crumbly with air trapped within; feeding the dough through a feeding side of an extruder via a sausage filler, wherein the use of the sausage filler creates a closed system preventing air from the dough from leaving the system and back into the feeding side; subjecting the dough to a high moisture extrusion (HME) process forming a processed dough or HME material; passing the HME material through a cooling die; and cutting the HME material in chunks of any shape or size, wherein the HME material may be a component for making a plant-based food product or used directly as a final food product. In many other embodiments, the batch-mixing method further comprises: optionally mixing at least an additional ingredient of choice to add flavor, texture, taste, or color to the HME material in a cooking tumbler before or after cutting the HME material in chunks, wherein the HME material may be a component for making a plant-based food product or used directly as a final food product.
In many embodiments, the batch-mixing method further comprises: heating the HME material, wherein the HME material may be heated at least at a temperature of 80° C.; freezing the HME material, wherein the HME material is freeze via IQF-freezing for preservation, packaging, and transportation; and packaging the HME material in a packaging tray in the presence of at least a protective gas, wherein the HME material may be used as a component for producing a plant-based food product or used directly as a plant-based food product.
In many embodiments, the disclosure relates to a composition of making a plant-based food product, comprising: at least a plant protein, wherein the plant protein may be any plant-sourced protein or protein extracted from a plant; and at least an aqueous phase, preferably water, wherein plant protein and water are mixed simultaneously in batches in a mixer to prepare a dough, wherein the dough may be a component for producing a plant-based food product or used directly as a final food product. In many other embodiments, the composition further comprises optionally adding at least an ingredient to add flavor, taste, or color to the dough. In certain other embodiments, the composition comprises simultaneously mixing the plant protein and water within a batch-mixer in a ratio of 1:1, wherein mixing protein and water simultaneously forms a dry and crumbly dough with air bubbles. The dough formed is further processed via a high moisture extrusion process or HME process, wherein the dough is fed into an extruder using a sausage filler, creating a close system, such that the air bubbles within the dough are trapped within the system and homogeneously distribute the air bubbles as the dough undergoes the extrusion process providing sponginess, a texture, and color to the HME material, wherein the HME material mirrors a meat-food product, such as cooked chicken in color and texture.
Other systems, methods, features and advantages of the invention will be or will become apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of the following figures and detailed description. It is intended that all such additional systems, methods, features and advantages be included within this description, be within the scope of the invention, and be protected by the accompanying claims.
The accompanying figures, where like reference numerals refer to steps of the process and embodiments, together with the detailed description below, are incorporated in and form part of the specification, and serve to further illustrate embodiments of concepts that include the claimed disclosure, and explain various principles and advantages of those embodiments.
The methods and composition disclosed herein have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the flowcharts, photographs, or drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present disclosure so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.
The exemplary embodiments described and illustrated herein should be applicable to all plant-based food products.
While the presently disclosed process and composition are susceptible of embodiment in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and will herein be described in detail several specific embodiments with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the present technology and is not intended to limit the technology to the embodiments illustrated.
In summary, provided herein is a process of preparing and processing a plant-based food product, such as a vegan food product, and its composition thereof. More particularly, provided herein is a process and composition for making a vegan food product achieving a defined structure and color, wherein the structure and color of the plant-based food product are similar to a meat-based food product.
The chunks may then be mixed with other ingredients (107) within a cooking tumbler (108) to add flavors to the finished product. The choice of ingredients may include but is not limited to, spices, spice extracts, salt, vegetable oil, or other such flavors depending on the recipe of choice. The spice-mixed chunks or spice-mixed material is further subjected to heating (109) at more than 80° C. temperature within the cooking tumbler. Following heating (109), the spice-mixed mixture or food product is introduced to IQF-freezing (110). The frozen material is then packaged in trays with sleeves (111). The final packaging of the material takes place in the presence of a protective gas. Processed material is packed in each tray followed in some cases by freezing (112). Further, other types of packaging may also be employed such as QSR (box with in-liner) or retail cardboard box for retail frozen. Both the QSR packaging and retail cardboard packaging can be done without the use of protective gas.
The dough prepared by the batch mixer method is fed into an extruder via a sausage filler (204). Feeding the dough into the extruder via a sausage filler provides many advantages, such as the system being closed thus, distributed air in the dough cannot go out of the extruder towards the feeding side. Whereas feeding protein in the form of a powder into the extruder, as shown in the standard process in
Therefore, homogeneous distribution of air bubbles resulting from the batch mixing process disclosed herein results in adding sponginess to the food product and a lighter color such as beige, light beige, or white, as further shown in
Owing to the batch mixing process described in
The HME material undergoes IQF-freezing (210), wherein the HME material is frozen and prepared for preservation, transport, and sale. Following heating and freezing, the end food product or HME material in the shape of chunks is packaged in a packaging tray with at least one sleeve (211), which in some cases is followed by re-freezing (212). The final packaging is carried in the presence of a protective gas with at least 160 g of food product packaged per tray (211). The quantity of the food product packaged depends on a number of factors, including but not limited to, the density of the food product, size of the packaging tray, and size of the sleeves, among others.
Depending on these various factors, more or less than 180 g of the food product may be packaged per packaging tray (or another packaging). Further, other types of packaging may also be employed such as QSR (box with in-liner) or retail cardboard box for retail frozen. Both the QSR packaging and retail cardboard packaging can be done without the use of protective gas.
The packaged tray may be assigned a batch number or an identification number printed on the tray, sleeve, or other visible location. The packaging tray will also comprise metal detection or other such embodiments necessary and regularly employed as part of the food manufacturing, packaging, and transport process such as before the food product is sent to the customer, BBD is printed.
In some embodiments, a sausage filler may also be replaced by a powerful mono pump, wherein the dough maybe fed into the extruder via the mono pump. The presently disclosed batch mixing process as explained and shown in
Batch mixing as described in
In the description, for purposes of explanation and not limitation, specific details are set forth, such as particular embodiments, procedures, techniques, etc. in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present technology. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that the present technology may be practiced in other embodiments that depart from these specific details.
While specific embodiments of, and examples for, the process and compositions are described above for illustrative purposes, various equivalent modifications are possible within the scope of the system, as those skilled in the relevant art will recognize. For example, while processes or steps are presented in a given order, alternative embodiments may perform routines having steps in a different order, and some processes or steps may be deleted, moved, added, subdivided, combined, and/or modified to provide alternative or sub-combinations. Each of these processes or steps may be implemented in a variety of different ways. Also, while processes or steps are at times shown as being performed in series, these processes or steps may instead be performed in parallel or may be performed at different times.
While various embodiments have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only and not in limitation. The descriptions are not intended to limit the scope of the present technology to the particular forms set forth herein. On the contrary, the present descriptions are intended to cover such alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the present technology as appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art. Thus, the breadth and scope of a preferred embodiment should not be limited by any of the above-described exemplary embodiments.
The foregoing description of an implementation has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not exhaustive and does not limit the claimed inventions to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of the above description or may be acquired from practicing the invention. The claims and their equivalents define the scope of the invention.
This application claims priority of the following provisional patent applications: 1. Prov. App. Ser. No. 63/132,323 titled “Process and Composition for Plant-Based Food Products,” by Achim Knoch filed on Dec. 30, 2020; and2. Prov. App. Ser. No. 63/180,921 titled “Rework Process for Plant-Based Food Production,” by Achim Knoch filed on Apr. 28, 2021. All of the above-listed US provisional patent applications are incorporated by reference herein in its entirety, including all references and appendices cited therein, for all purposes. This application is also related to U.S. application Ser. No. ______, filed on ______, entitled “Rework Process for Plant-Based Food Production,” by Achim Knoch (Atty. Docket Number 9740US), which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety, including all references and appendices cited therein, for all purposes.
Number | Date | Country | |
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63132323 | Dec 2020 | US | |
63180921 | Apr 2021 | US |