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US 20080292754A1 (19) United States (12) Patent Application Publication (10) Pub. No.: US 2008/0292754 A1 Katada et al. (43) Pub. Date: NOV. 27, 2008 (54) INSTANT FOOD COMPRISING FLAVOUR (86) PCT No.: PCT/IB2006/054619 CAPSULES § 371 (0X1), _ (2), (4) Date: May 2, 2008 (76) Inventors: Jun Katada,Yokohama-C1ty _ _ _ _ _ KanagaWa (JP); Laetitia Nicolas, (30) Forelgn APPhcatmn Prlm‘lty Data St-Julien-En-Genevois (FR); Takao sushida’ Kashiwa_city (JP) Dec. 8, 2005 (EP) ................................ .. 05111842.0 Publication Classi?cation Correspondence Address: (51) Int. Cl. WINSTON & STRAWN LLP A23L 1/22 (2006.01) PATENT DEPARTMENT (52) US. Cl. ......................................... .. 426/62; 426/455 1700 K STREET, NW. (57) ABSTRACT WASHINGTON, DC 20006 (US) The present invention relates to instant food products of ?avor capsules that include yeast and, encapsulated therein, a ?a (21) App1.No.: 12/092,544 voring ingredient or composition Wherein the instant food has a Water content of 13 Wt % or less. The instant food may be a (22) PCT Filed: Dec. 6, 2006 soup, noodles or a seasoning or topping. US 2008/0292754 A1 Nov. 27, 2008 INSTANT FOOD COMPRISING FLAVOUR [0014] e) adding the dried capsules to a dried instant food to CAPSULES produce an instant food having a Water activity of 0.5 or less When measured at 20° C. TECHNICAL FIELD [0015] In yet another aspect, the invention provides a top ping comprising dried vegetables and/or spices, and ?avour [0001] The present invention relates to instant food prod capsules as de?ned above, the topping having a Water activity ucts comprising ?avour capsules, to a method of ?avouring of 0.5 or less When measured at 20° C. instant food products, and to a topping comprising ?avour [0016] In a further aspect, the invention provides an instant capsules. food product comprising dried instant noodles and a dried topping as de?ned herein. BACKGROUND AND PRIOR ART [0002] Instant food products generally are products that DETAILED DESCRIPTION have a relatively long shelf life but may be prepared in a very [0017] The present invention relates to an instant food short time, such as a feW minutes, for example. product. The terms “instant food”, “instant product” or “food [0003] Flavours, on the other hand, are generally volatile product” are also used interchangeably herein to refer to the compounds or compositions comprising volatile compounds, instant food product of the present invention. and are thus, a priori, not suitable for a long-term storage. [0018] An instant food product is a food or beverage After a feW days, ?avours in food products have evaporated designed for quick preparation. Quick, for the purpose of the from the food product and are no longer perceived during the present invention, refers to a preparation time of 10 minutes consumption of the food product. Furthermore, ?avours may or less. be sensitive to oxygen exposure over time and thus degrade. [0019] The instant food product is, prior to reconstitution [0004] Encapsulation of a ?avour brings an advantage in With liquid, a dry product. A “dry food product”, for the such a situation. HoWever, a number of restrictions need to be purpose of the invention, is a food product that has a Water ful?lled When using encapsulated ?avours in food products activity of beloW 0.5, preferably beloW 0.45, more preferably having a long shelf life. Importantly, the ?avours should not beloW 0.4, even more preferably beloW 0.35 or even beloW be released before preparation and/or consumption. Still, 0.3. Most preferably, the Water activity is beloW 0.25, 0.2, given the short preparation time of most instant foods, the 0.15 or even beloW 0.1. ?avours need to be released in a relatively short time at the [0020] This is key to the present invention because the moment the instant food product is prepared, providing the inventors have found that When the food product is very dry, impression of freshness to the consumer. In addition, it is better stability of the ?avour capsules that are part of the important that at least some ?avour is not instantly released instant food can be achieved. during the preparation time, but instead during consumption [0021] Water activity is measured With an Aqualab CX-2 otherWise a high ?avour impact is obtained during prepara apparatus (Decagon Devices, Inc., Pullman, Wash., USA). tion, but no ?avour is available any more during consumption. The apparatus is to be used according to the user’s manual. In [0005] It Would be desirable to provide a ?avoured instant particular the thermostatic Water bath connected to the appa food product in a Way that ?avours remain intact and do not ratus is adjusted to 20° C. The procedure is started once the evaporate or otherWise dissipate until preparation and/or con sample has been made thermostatic in the chamber foreseen sumption. It Would be particularly desirable to have a certain for this and, at the end of the procedure, the temperature is ?avour release during preparation of the instant food, for checked to con?rm that it is still at 20:0.5° C. example by the addition of hot Water, and an increased per [0022] The dry instant food product preferably has a Water ception of the ?avour during consumption. content of equal to or less than 13 Wt. %, more preferably [0006] Many ?avour systems have been evaluated foruse in equal to or less than 12 Wt. %, even more preferably equal to instant foods to date. HoWever, it is a constant objective to or less than 11 Wt. %. For example, the instant food product provide better taste to a consumer than comparable products has a Water content in the range of 3 to 10 Wt. %, based on the already on the market. total Weight of the product. [0007] The present invention seeks to address one or more [0023] In the context of the present invention, percentages of the abovementioned problems and/or to provide one or or parts are generally percentages or parts by Weight of dry more of the abovementioned bene?ts. matter, unless otherWise indicated, for example by reference to aqueous solutions or percentages of solids, Where the per SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION centages refer to parts of the total solution, including Water. [0024] In a preferred embodiment, the instant food is pre [0008] Accordingly, the present invention provides an pared by adding hot Water to the instant food product. Hot instant food product comprising ?avour capsules comprising Water, for the purpose of the invention is Water having a yeast, and, encapsulated therein, a ?avouring ingredients or temperature of greater than 50° C., more preferably greater composition, Wherein the instant food product has a Water than 60° C., even more preferably greater than 70, 80 or even activity beloW 0.5 When measured at 20° C. 90° C. After adding the Water, the product is then ready for [0009] In another aspect, the invention provides a method consumption after 0.5 to 10 minutes, preferably 2 to 8 min of preparing an instant food comprising the steps of utes. [0010] a) mixing yeast With Water to obtain an aqueous [0025] Alternatively, the instant food of the present inven mixture, tion may be prepared for consumption by boiling the instant [0011] b) adding a ?avour to the aqueous mixture, food in Water for the time periods indicated above. [0012] c) stirring the aqueous mixture including the ?avour [0026] The instant food of the present invention may be any until at least part of the ?avour has passed into the yeast, instant food. For example, the instant food may be a complete [0013] d) drying the resulting mixture, meal or dish, including a starch source, vegetables and/or US 2008/0292754 A1 Nov. 27, 2008 fruits, lipids and/or a protein source, for example from ani [0037] A “?avouring ingredient or composition”, also mal, ?sh and/or plant origin. If the food product is a complete referred to as “?avour” as used herein generally encompasses meal, it is most preferably an instant soup. ?avour ingredients or compositions of current use in the food [0027] Alternatively, the instant food may be an isolated industry, of both natural and synthetic origin. It includes food material that can be instantly prepared, for example single compounds and mixtures. The capsules used in the instant mashed potatoes, pure instant rice, instant noodles and invention can encapsulate volatile or labile ingredients in any other instantly preparable ingredient. Instant noodles are liquid form, preferably With a log P in the range of —2 and 7, preferred. preferably 2-6. Speci?c examples of such components may [0028] If the instant food is instant noodles, it may com be found in the current literature, eg in Fenaroli’s Handbook prise fried or air-dried instant noodles. Fried instant noodles of ?avour ingredients, 1975, CRC Press; Synthetic Food are generally prepared by mixing and kneading raW materials adjuncts, 1947 by M. B. Jacobs, edited by Van Nostrand; or such as ?our, Water and optionally other ingredients, rolling Perfume and Flavor Chemicals by S. Arctander, 1969, Mont and sheeting the dough thus obtained. Further steps generally clair, N]. (U SA). These substances are Well knoWn to a comprise cutting or forming the sheeted dough into noodle person skilled in the art of ?avouring or aromatising con strips, gelatinising the noodle strips, for example by steam sumer products, i.e. of imparting an odour or a ?avour or taste heating, and dehydrating, in this case in a short frying step, to a consumer product traditionally ?avoured, or of modify such that dried noodles are reconstituted faster.