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US 7,501,140 B2Granted
Method for processing meat slabs
AssigneeChallenge RMF, Inc.
InventorsBruce M. Gould, Jeffrey K. Arnswald, Christopher O. Norman
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus and method for processing meat slabs into meat strips, particularly pork belly slabs into bacon strips. The apparatus includes a massager, a slab press station, a sleeve for holding the pressed slab, an oven or smokehouse, a blast chiller, a slab removable device and a spiral freezer. The method for processing the meat slab into meat strips includes massaging the slab, pressing the slabs and inserting the slabs into sleeves in the pressed condition. The sleeves are then transported to an oven for cooking and then a blast chiller. Once chilled, the slabs are removed from the sleeve and sliced to the appropriate thickness.
Claims41
A method of processing a meat slab, comprising the steps of:
- massaging the slab;
- placing the massaged slab in a cavity having two parallel sidewalls and a base extending between the two sidewalls, the cavity having room at least at a first end for expansion of the slab parallel to the sidewalls and the base;
- pressing the placed slab in the cavity against the base to a predetermined thickness including advancing a platen toward the base with the slab unfrozen;
- allowing the slab to expand in the direction of the first end during pressing;
- providing a sleeve for receiving the pressed slab from the first end;
- discharging the pressed slab from the cavity by pushing the pressed slab parallel to the sidewalls, the base and the platen into the sleeve through the first end of the cavity with the slab pressed by the platen to the predetermined thickness.
3 more elements
A method of processing a meat slab, comprising the steps of:
- massaging the slab;
- placing the massaged slab in a cavity, the cavity having room at least at a first end for expansion of the slab;
- pressing the slab at a temperature above freezing in the cavity to a predetermined thickness, wherein the slab is pressed with a flat platen;
- providing a sleeve open at least at a first end for receiving the pressed slab;
- discharging the pressed slab from the cavity into the sleeve through the first open end of the cavity while the slab is being pressed by the flat platen;
- chilling the slab to at least a crust frozen condition;
- and
- removing the chilled slab from the sleeve.
5 more elements
A method of processing a meat slab, comprising the steps of:
- massaging the slab;
- placing the massaged slab in a cavity, the cavity having at least a first open end;
- pressing the slab in the cavity to a predetermined thickness;
- providing a sleeve with at least a first open end for receiving the pressed slab, wherein the sleeve comprises an upper surface and lower surface, the upper and lower surfaces having a pattern of apertures;
- discharging the pressed slab from the cavity into the sleeve through the first open end of the cavity while the stab is being pressed.
2 more elements
A method of processing meat slabs in preparation for cooking and slicing into strips, comprising the steps of:
- placing at least one of the slabs uncooked and above freezing in a rectangular cavity of a width equal to the desired length of the sliced strips and of a length longer than the at least one slab placed in the cavity;
- pressing the at least one slab in the rectangular cavity with a flat platen in a direction perpendicular to said width and length to a thickness of the at least one slab equal to the desired width of the sliced strips;
- providing a rectangular sleeve with an open end having a width equal to the cavity width and a height equal to the thickness of the pressed at least one slab, said rectangular sleeve having a length for receiving the length of the pressed at least one slab;
- and
- discharging the at least one pressed slab from the rectangular cavity by pushing the pressed slab in the direction of the cavity length into the rectangular sleeve through the open end while maintaining the flat platen in the same position against the at least one slab as when the pressing was completed;
- chilling the at least one slab to at least a crust frozen condition;
- and
- removing the slab chilled at least at a crust frozen condition from the sleeve.
5 more elements
A method of processing meat slabs in preparation for cooking and slicing into strips, comprising the steps of:
- placing the slabs having a temperature above freezing in a cavity of a width equal to the desired length of the sliced strips and of a length longer than the slabs placed in the cavity;
- pressing the slabs in the rectangular cavity with a flat platen in a direction perpendicular to said width and length to a thickness of the slabs equal to the desired width of the sliced strips;
- releasing the pressing of the slabs by the platen after pressing the thickness of the slabs equal to the desired width of the sliced strips and then pressing the slabs again to that thickness;
- providing a rectangular sleeve with an open end having a width equal to the cavity width and a height equal to the thickness of the pressed slabs, said rectangular sleeve having a length for receiving the length of the pressed slabs;
- discharging the pressed slabs from the rectangular cavity in the direction of the cavity length into the rectangular sleeve through the open end while maintaining the flat platen in the same position as when the pressing was completed;
- cooking the meat slab in the sleeve;
- chilling the cooked slab to at least a crust frozen condition;
- and
- removing the chilled slab from the sleeve.
6 more elements
A method of processing pork bellies for slicing into bacon strips, comprising the steps of:
- massaging the bellies at a temperature below room temperature and above freezing for conditioning the bellies;
- placing the bellies in a rectangular cavity of a width equal to the desired length of the processed bacon strips and of a length longer than the bellies placed in the cavity, said cavity being open at both ends in the direction of the length;
- pressing the bellies in the rectangular cavity with a flat platen in a direction
- perpendicular to said width and length to a thickness of the bellies equal to the desired
- width of the processed bacon strips, said flat platen having the width and length of the rectangular cavity for inhibiting the passage of the bellies past the platen during pressing but causing the bellies to expand in the direction of the length of the rectangular cavity;
- releasing the pressing of the bellies by the platen by reversing the movement in the perpendicular direction and then pressing the bellies again in the perpendicular direction with a flat platen;
- providing a rectangular sleeve with an open end having a width equal to the cavity width and a sleeve height equal to the thickness of the pressed bellies forming the bacon strip width, said rectangular sleeve having a length for receiving the length of the pressed bellies;
- providing an upper stripper plate and a lower stripper plate covering the length and width of the upper and lower rectangular surfaces, respectively, of the rectangular sleeve, said stripper plates each having a pattern of protrusions fitting into and filling a like pattern of apertures in the upper and lower rectangular surfaces of the sleeve and forming a smooth interior surface in the sleeve for receiving the bellies from the rectangular cavity;
- discharging the pressed bellies from the rectangular cavity in the direction of the cavity length into the rectangular sleeve while maintaining the flat platen in the same position as when the pressing was completed for establishing the bacon strip width to thereby maintain that width;
- pressing the bellies lengthwise into the rectangular sleeve with a force adequate to minimize voids and square the ends of the bellies without causing lengthwise compression of the bellies to thereby complete the rectangular shape of the formed bellies;
- removing the stripper plates from the rectangular sleeve and placing the sleeve with the bellies retained therein into a cooking environment until cooked;
- removing the bellies-filled sleeve from the cooking environment and blast chilling the bellies to a predetermined temperature above freezing while retaining the bellies in the sleeve;
- covering the upper and lower rectangular surfaces of the sleeve with upper and lower stripper plates, respectively, each having a pattern of protrusions fitting into and filling the like pattern of apertures in the upper and lower rectangular surfaces of the sleeve and forming a smooth interior surface in the sleeve;
- discharging the shaped and cooked bellies from the stripper plate covered sleeve through an open end of the sleeve;
- chilling the shaped and cooked bellies to a predetermined temperature while maintaining the rectangular shape.
12 more elements
A method of processing a meat slab in preparation for slicing into strips, comprising the steps of:
- placing the slab at above freezing in a cavity of a width equal to the desired length of the sliced strips, of a length, at least at a first end, for full expansion of the meat slab along the length and with an open top;
- pressing the slab at above freezing into the cavity through the open top in a direction perpendicular to the cavity width and length to a thickness equal to the desired width of the sliced strips and without compression of the slab along the length of the cavity;
- locating a sleeve with an open end at the first end of the cavity, the sleeve having a width equal to the cavity width and a height equal to the thickness of the pressed slab, the sleeve having a length for receiving the length of the pressed slab;
- and
- discharging the pressed slab at above freezing from the cavity by pushing the pressed slab in the direction of the catty length through the first end of the cavity into the sleeve through the open end of the sleeve, including keeping the slab at the thickness equal to the desired width of the sliced strips.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.