Method and apparatus for making a popcorn-shaped frozen product
AssigneeDippin' Dots, Inc.
InventorsStanley O. Jones, Curt D. Jones
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present invention is directed to a novel method for manufacturing popcorn-shaped frozen product, such as but not limited to ice cream. Unlike prior systems that manufactured small, beaded frozen product, the method of the present invention introduces a much larger (diametrically larger) quantity of liquid composition into the liquid refrigerant. By introducing a sufficiently large quantity of liquid composition into the liquid refrigerant, the freezing processes changes substantially, to give the final product a popcorn shape.
Claims18
An apparatus for producing a popcorn-shaped frozen product comprising:
- a freezing chamber containing liquid refrigerant;
- a feed tray overlying the freezing chamber and configured to receive liquid composition from a delivery source to produce a popcorn-shaped frozen product, the tray having a plurality of orifices for regulating discharge of liquid composition from the tray, the orifices being approximately {fraction (7/64)} of an inch in diameter, and the feed tray being spaced approximately 18 to 22 inches above a surface of the liquid refrigerant in the freezing chamber.
A method of producing a popcorn-shaped frozen product comprising:
- controllably sizing globules of a liquid composition of the product to be frozen;
- and
- introducing the controllably-sized globules into a liquid refrigerant that is cold enough substantially flash-freeze an outer surface of the controllably-sized globules, such that an inner portion will burst through the frozen outer surface upon expansion as the inner portion approaches a freezing temperature to produce a popcorn-shaped frozen product.
A method of producing a popcorn-shaped frozen product comprising:
- introducing a plurality of globules of a liquid composition to be frozen into the frozen product into a liquid refrigerant;
- freezing an outer surface of the globules;
- after freezing the outer surface, causing expansion of the liquid composition that is inside the frozen outer surface, so that the expansion of the liquid composition bursts through the frozen outer surface to produce a popcorn-shaped frozen product.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.