Apparatus for coating meat
AssigneeHoney Baked Ham, Inc.
InventorsRichard E. Gore, Allen Mottershead
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for coating hams is provided. Sugar is uniformly dispensed on an inclined plate that is heated to melt the sugar. The sugar flows into a reservoir from which it is poured onto hams passing below the reservoir on a conveyor. Spices are poured onto the melted sugar that sticks to the ham to form a glaze. Jets of water can cool the glaze to increase retention on the ham. The process can be repeated.
Claims22
An apparatus for coating a piece of meat, comprising:
- a source of sugar;
- a heated surface for melting said sugar;
- a control system comprising a sensor configured measure a control parameter associated with the sugar, wherein the control system, in response to the control parameter, is adapted to cause said sugar to melt on the surface without burning the sugar;
- and
- a reservoir in fluid communication with the heated surface, the reservoir being sized to contain a sufficient volume of melted sugar to coat a surface of at least one piece of meat with the melted sugar, the reservoir being configured to dispense the melted sugar onto the at least one piece of meat.
An apparatus for coating food product, comprising:
- a source of sugar;
- a heated surface adapted to melt the sugar without burning the sugar;
- and
- a reservoir in fluid communication with the heated surface, the reservoir being configured to dispense the melted sugar onto at least one food product;
- wherein the source of sugar is adapted to deposit sugar onto the heated surface in response to a control parameter measured by a sensor and communicated by a controller.
A method of coating a food product with a sugar glaze, the method comprising:
- providing a source of sugar;
- providing a heated surface;
- maintaining a temperature of said heated surface within a predetermined range of temperatures;
- depositing a quantity of sugar onto said heated surface;
- and
- electronically controlling at least one of a temperature of the heated surface and a rate of deposition of said sugar onto said surface such that said sugar is melted but not burned on said surface;
- directing said melted sugar to coat a food product.
A control system for melting a confection for delivery onto a food product, the system comprising:
- a source of an unmelted confection;
- a heated surface configured to melt the confection thereon;
- a deposition apparatus configured to deposit the unmelted confection onto the heated surface;
- a sensor configured to sense a parameter associated with the confection;
- and
- a controller configured to adjust either a temperature of said heated surface or a rate of deposition of the confection onto the heated surface in response to a value of said parameter.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.