US 2010/0075016 A1 · METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR TEMPERING OF MEAT, TEMPERED MEAT TREATED BY THE METHOD, AND REFRIGERATED MEAT STORAGE

Abstract

A tempering treatment method whereby the temperature of meat, which involves carcass prepared by slaughtering cattle or poultry and sterilizing and washing, is lowered as close to the ice storage temperature as possible to prevent a temperature rise caused by the actions of enzymes contained within the meat before transporting the meant to a refrigerated storage, which comprises surface-freezing the meat by blowing a cold air stream at about −20 to about −40° C. to the meant before conducting the tempering treatment, thus allowing the generation of freezing latent heat in the subcutaneous part owing to the surface-freezing (freezing the subcutaneous tissue), and then rapidly lowering the core temperature inside the meat due to the latent heat released at the melting of the freezing latent heat to thereby conduct the tempering treatment at a temperature of 0 to +15° C.

Claims10

Dependent claims

A method for tempering a sterilized and washed carcass to lower its temperature to an icing storage temperature before the carcass is transferred to a refrigeration storage for preventing temperature rise thereof due to actions of enzymes within the carcass, said method comprising;

performing freezing subcutaneous tissue part of the carcass (hereafter referred to as surface-freezing) by blowing cold air to impinge on to the carcass, the temperature of the cold air being equal or lower than that at which the subcutaneous tissue part freezes, preferably a cold air of −20˜−40° C. on to the carcass, thereby producing a frozen layer which stores latent cold heat in the subcutaneous tissue part, and
performing tempering the carcass under ambient temperature of 0˜15° C. after said surface-freezing so that the frozen part absorbs heat from the core part of the carcass to be unfrozen and the core part decreases in temperature rapidly.

An apparatus for treating a carcass comprising:

a surface freezing section in which such a freezing operation is performed that a subcutaneous tissue part of the carcass (hereafter referred to as surface freezing) is frozen by blowing cold air of a temperature of −20˜−40° C. which is equal or lower than the freezing point of the subcutaneous tissue part, to impinge on to the carcass, thereby producing a frozen layer which stores latent cold heat in the subcutaneous tissue, and
a tempering section for performing tempering under ambient temperature of 0˜15° C. by allowing the carcass to be lowered in core temperature by releasing heat from the core part to the frozen layer to unfreeze the layer and attain equalization of temperature of the carcass.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Method and apparatus for tempering of meat, tempered meat treated by the method, and refrigerated meat storage

Life of this patent

Method and apparatus for tempering of meat, tempered meat treated by the method, and refrigerated meat storage

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims10