Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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PACKAGED,PREPAREDGROUND MEATPRODUCTS
Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to packaged and prepared cooked ground meat products
and methods for processing, packaging and subsequently cooking such ground meat products.
More specifically, the present invention relates to ground meat products that are mixed with an
additive, packaged, sealed and heated prior to distribution. Such packaged, cooked meat
products may be distributed in the original packaging and used by consumers directly with or
without reh~ting, or the product can be reheated in the original packaging to enhance
10 convenience and to preserve flavor and sterility.
Background of the Invention
Ground meat products are ordinarily sold to consumers in a raw form for cooking and
preparation by the consumer. Ground meat products are frequently processed, for example, by
grinding, chopping, shredding, cutting, and the like, to render them useful for a variety of
applications and to increase their appeal to the consumer. Ground meats enjoy high levels of
sales because they may be conveniently used in a variety of preparations and they generally do
not require elaborate or time consuming preparation. They are also generally perceived to
represent a good value.
Raw meat products have very strict handling and storage requirements. The shelf life
of fresh ground meat products under refrigeration conditions is limited. Modified atmosphere
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may be introduced during the packaging of fresh meats to extend the shelf life of the product.
Freshness concerns are of paramount importance to meat distributors and consumers alike.
Any processing or packaging step that introduces non-sterile material or takes place in
a non-sterile environment poses cont~min~tion risks. Cont~min:~tion may be introduced during
any phase of meat preparation or processing and, if the meat is not subsequently heated to a
sufficient temperature for a sufficient time period, such cont~min~nt~ may be present in
product acquired by consumers. Meat processing steps that take place prior to cooking, such
as grinding, introduction of additive ingredients, mixing, and the like, may introduce
cont~min~nts. If the cooking times or temperatures are inadequate, cont~min~nts of various
10 types, including harmful bacterial cont~min~nts, may survive the cooking process and cause
harm to the consumer. A high percentage of illness attributable to meat products is caused by
inadequate cooking by the consumer.
In addition to food safety and sanitation concerns, convenience and ease of preparation
of meals is increasingly important to retail, as well as commercial and institutional consumers.
Sales of prepared foods in general, and prepared meats in particular, are increasing as
consumers identify more convenient, prepared food products.
Various types of meat products have been commercially processed, prepared, cooked
and then packaged for sale to consumers. Because cooking is generally followed by cooling
and packaging steps, cont~min~nt~ may be introduced following the cooking process. There is
20 generally no further processing following cooking that would destroy such cont~min~nts, and
they remain in the packaged product.
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Summary of the Invention
The present invention relates to ground meat processing, packaging, and cooking
methods for producing a packaged, prepared ground meat product suitable for direct use.
According to methods of the present invention, a predetermined portion of ground meat and at
least one additive is sealed in a "cook-in" packaging material in which the product can be
heated, cooled, stored, and reheated, if desired. During the cooking process, most bacterial
cont~min~nts introduced during meat processing are destroyed as a result of temperature
intolerances. The ground meat product is thus effectively pasteurized during the cooking
10 process. The cooked product is retained in its original packaging, cooled and, if necessary,
stored prior to distribution and sale to consumers. Because the packaging is sealed prior to
cooking and the product does not come in contact with any outside atmosphere until it is
opened by the consumer for consumption, cont~min~nts are not introduced and the consumer
can be assured that the ground meat product is safe and free from harmful bacterial
cont~min~nts.
The methods of the present invention are especially suitable for use with "ground"
meat products. The term "ground" meat products is used to indicate any meat product which is
treated, for exarnple, by grinding, chopping, shredding or cutting. Additives, including
flavorings or seasonings, may be introduced prior to p~ek~ging and cooking. The methods of
20 the present invention are especially suitable for use with ground beef, but are not limited to
that application.
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Depending on the type of meat used, the type of processing, and the like, certain
parameters may be preferred for certain applications. In general, ground meat that is packaged
and cooked according to the present invention is lean, and meat having a leanness of at least
about 80% is pler~lled. Extended shelf lives for the packaged, processed meat products can
generally be achieved without the use of preservatives. An additive that serves as a moisture
absorber and absorbs fluids such as water, which are generated during the cooking process, is
preferably introduced and mixed with the ground meat prior to packaging and cooking. If
flavorings or seasonings are mixed with the ground meat product prior to packaging,
seasonings that do not "bind" or agglomerate the ground meat product are preferably selected.
10 If salt is used as a seasoning, it is preferably used in an encapsulated form in which the salt
particles are encapsulated in a non-binding, unflavored material such as soybean oil, that
reduces agglomeration of the ground meat during mixing and cooking.
After the ground meat is processed and any desired additives have been introduced, the
processed meat is divided into portions and packaged by sealing in a flexible, non-porous
m~teri~l. The packaging material is impervious to both liquids and atmosphere and has the
strength and durability to withstand heat and considerable handling. Packaging film known as
"cook-in" material is preferred. It is generally applied as sheet or bag material over formed
ground meat products and sealed around the edges.
After the ground meat product is packaged, it is at least partially cooked, and preferably
20 fully cooked, while sealed in the packaging. Suitable cooking methods include microwaving,
boiling, ste~ming, immersion in a hot liquid, or the like. Some distortion of the packaging
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may take place during cooking, but there is substantially no communication between the
atmosphere inside the package and that outside the package during cooking or subsequent
handling. The cooking process pasteurizes the packaged ground meat product. The packaged,
cooked ground meat product is cooled following cooking and may be stored or transported, as
necessary. Institutional, wholesale and retail consumers generally purchase the packaged meat
product in a refrigerated or frozen condition and may use it directly. The cooked ground meat
may be reheated either in the original packaging or after removal from the original packaging.
In either case, the packaged and cooked ground meat product is free of harmful microbial
cont~min~nt~ when opened by the user.
Description of Preferred Embodiments
Preferred embodiments of the methods and products of the present invention will be
described principally with reference to ground beef, although the methods are suitable for and
easily adapted to other types of ground meats. Similarly, preferred additives providing
moisture absorbing properties are described as soy products and derivatives, although other
additives may be suitable for and adapted for use with ground beef and other types of ground
meats. Additives having other properties may also be incorporated.
The present invention preferably employs "ground" meat. Raw meat may be ground,
for example, by chopping, cutting, shredding, or grinding using conventional techniques.
20 Different types of meats or meat by-products or derivatives may be combined to produce a
ground meat product. Ground meat for use in the methods of the present invention preferably
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has a leanness of at least about 80 % , and most preferably has a leanness of at least about 90%.
Ground beef having a leanness of about 95 % has produced excellent experimental results.
Introduction of one or more additives takes place prior to packaging. Because ground
meats typically release a considerable amount of water during cooking, an additive that
absorbs water during the cooking process is introduced and mixed with the ground meat prior
to paçk~ging and cooking. Soybean byproducts and derivatives are preferred water absorbing
additives for use with ground beef. Although one or more liquids, such as water, are typically
introduced as additives when soy products are used in combination with meat products,
pr~r~ d methods and products of the present invention do not employ liquids as additives
10 prior to cooking.
Various types of soy products are available and would be appropriate for use as water
absorbing agents with various types of ground meat products. A preferred soy product for use
with ground beef products is a soy concentrate distributed by Archer-Daniel Midland under the
mark ARCON-T. Experimental results suggest that a preferred soy concentrate concentration
for use with unseasoned ground beef having a leanness of at least about 90% is about 1.5 % to
about 9.5 % , by weight, with a soy concentrate concentration of about 5.5 % by weight being
pr~r~ d. Experimental results likewise suggest that a slightly lower concentration of a water
absorbing agent is required for ground meat products having seasonings introduced prior to
cooking. A preferred soy concentrate concentration for a ground beef product incorporating
20 salt and additional seasonings is about 0.5 % to about 8.5 %, by weight, with a soy concentrate
concentration of about 4.5 % being preferred. Other types of water absorbing agents, such as
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potato derivatives, seaweed byproducts or derivatives, and the like, may be employed in the
place of or in addition to a soy product.
Additional additives may also be introduced to and mixed with the ground meat
product prior to packaging. Additives that reduce agglomeration or caking during mixing of
the ground meat product may be introduced, for example. Soybean oil and silica gel are
exemplary agglomeration reducing additives. Various types of flavorings or seasonings may
also be introduced to impart or enhance flavor, as desired, or to impart chemical or physical
properties, such as water absorption. Additives that are non-binding, in that they do not
promote agglomeration or clumping of the ground meat product during mixing and packaging,
10 are pl~f~lled. Salt is a plef~lled additive and, as a result of its binding properties, salt is
preferably introduced in an encapsulated form in which it is substantially non-binding during
mixing and packaging. Other types of additives, if they have binding properties, may also be
introduced in an encapsulated or non-binding form, or non-binding additives may be identified
and used. Additives are thoroughly mixed with the ground meat product prior to packaging
using techniques that are well known.
Following processing of the ground meat product and introduction of and mixture with
additives, it is divided into portions and packaged. Suitable forming processes and techniques
for making portions of ground meat products are well known. The packaging material is
preferably a flexible synthetic material that has high strength and durability, and is
20 substantially impervious to both liquids and gases. Additionally, the packaging material must
retain its structural and physical integrity during the cooking process and must be capable of
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withst~nding the temperature extremes of cooking and storage under refrigeration or freezing
conditions, and then a reheating process. Preferred packaging materials are known in the
industry as "cook-in" materials and are typically provided in a sheet or bag form. Materials
marketed by the CRYOVAC division of W.R. Grace & Co., Simpsonville, S.C. are suitable.
CRYOVAC materials marketed as T6070B (7mil full coextrusion forming web) and
H6240WB (4 mil adhesive l~min~te non-forming web) are preferred. Such materials use an
LLDPE type sealant. They have a moisture vapor tr~n~mis~ion rate of less than about 1.0
gr./100 sq. in./day at 100% RH and an oxygen tr~n~mis~ion rate of less than about 1.0 cc/100
sq. in./day at 0% RH.
The packaging process seals the processed ground meat product in the packaging using
a vacuum sealing process or a similar process in which most of the ambient atmosphere is
removed from inside the sealed package. In a typical process, two sheets of packaging
material are l~min~te(1 to one another around all edges of the ground meat product. Suitable
paçk~ging techniques are well known.
The packaged, sealed ground meat product is then fully or partially cooked, as
appropliate. Ground meat products are preferably fully cooked, for example, by microwaving,
boiling, ste~ming or hot liquid cooking the packages, as appropliate. The ground meat product
does not contact any atmosphere outside the packaging during the cooking process, and all by-
products of the cooking process remain inside the packaging. Sufficient temperatures are
20 m~int~ined for sufficient time periods during the cooking process to pasteurize the meat
product and destroy or inactivate substantially all microbial cont~min~nts.
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Following cooking, the packaged ground meat products are cooled, as necessary, and
stored and/or transported under refrigeration or freezing conditions. The packaged, cooked
ground meat product may be used directly, with or without reheating the product. The
packaged ground meat product may be reheated in the original packaging by boiling, ste~ming,
microwaving, or the like, or the pre-cooked meat product may be removed from the packaging
and reheated, as desired. The meat product is substantially free from microbial cont~min~nt.~
until the packaging is opened by the consumer. Because the product is sealed in the original
p~çk~ging, cooked, and pasteurized, it also exhibits a useful shelf life that is substantially
longer than that of fresh meat products.
One especially preferred application for the methods of the present invention is to
produce packaged, cooked ground meat in a form that is suitable for crumbling for use in a
variety of menu items such as tacos, chili, meat sauces, and the like. In this application, meat
is ground using conventional grinding techniques and appropriate additives are introduced.
For ground beef applications, soy concentrate marketed as ARCON-T is a preferred water
absorbing additive, which is introduced in the proportions described above, depending on the
presence and type of other additives. Additional seasonings, such as encapsulated salt, spices,
paprika, sugar, onion and/or garlic powder, and the like may be introduced to impart or
enhance flavor.
Following introduction of the additives, the meat product may be mixed thoroughly,
20 then ground a second time. Portions are preferably processed in a forming machine using a
process known as the TENDER-FORM process in which meat strands flow vertically through
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a fill plate and vertical strands are loosely collected into a formed shape. This type of
processing provides faster and more even cooking, and tends to make a more tender,
"crumbly" ground meat product. The portions may optionally be processed using a perforator
to enhance the crumbling properties of the ground meat product. This type of processing
provides a loosely formed portion that has sufficient integrity for packaging and cooking,
cooks evenly and rapidly, and is easily crumbled by a consumer, before or after reheating.
Following processing, ground meat portions are packaged by sealing the portion
between two sheets of a cook-in, gas- and liquid- impermeable flexible sheet material.
Consumers may crumble the packaged, cooked meat product simply by manipulating and
10 squeezing the packaging either before or after reheating, or the meat product may be removed
from the paçk~gin~ and crumbled by manipulation with a utensil. Using the methods of the
present invention, the sealed, prepared ground meat product may be stored for an extended
period of time, reheated in its original packaging, and eaten or served immediately upon
removing it from the packaging.
While in the foregoing specification this invention has been described in relation to
certain preferred embodiments, and many details have been set forth for purposes of
illustration, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is susceptible to
additional embodiments and that certain of the details described herein may be varied
considerably without departing from the basic principles of the invention.
