Note : Les revendications sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property
or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:
1. A process for producing a dry product for food pre-
paration comprising:
wetting and mixing together an edible, hydrophilic
substance with an amount of water or an aqueous liquid sufficient
to form a crumbly mass; folding into said crumbly mass a binder
material comprising a starch or starch containing material in
an amount to form 25% to 75% by weight, based on the weight of
the crumbly mass, until homogeneous;
conditioning, drying and sifting said homogeneous
mass to obtain a dry product having a particle size of about
100 to 300 microns, the weight ratio of hydrophilic substance
to water and binder material being such that the conditioned
product is in the form of agglomerates having binder material
nuclei particles surrounded by a layer of said hydrophilic
substance, said dry product, when blended with dry food
ingredients, forming an instant food product capable of being
readily and easily dissolved in hot or cold water without
forming lumps.
2. The process of claim 1, wherein said hydrophilic
substances are wetted and uniformly mixed with about 3 to
30% by weight of said water or aqueous liquid based upon the
weight of said hydrophilic substance.
3, The process of claim 2, wherein said hydrophilic
substance is crystalline.
4. The process of claim 1, wherein the edible, hydro-
philic substance is selected from the group consisting of sugars,
sugar alcohols, organic acids, inorganic salts, sodium gluta-
mate and mixtures thereof.
5. The process of claim 1, wherein said starch or starch-
containing material is selected from the group consisting of
native starches, edible modified starches, roast dextrin,
thin-boiling starches, oxidized starches, starch esters and
starch ethers, and mixtures thereof.
6. The process of claim 1, 2 or 4, wherein said
agglomerated and conditioned mass is dried to a water content
of about 2 to 10%.
7. The process of claim 1, wherein said binder material
includes a binder selected from edible, high molecular weight,
vegetable binders and gelatin in an amount of up to about 25%
by weight based upon the weight of said starch or starch-
containing material.
8. The process of claim 1, 2 or 4, which includes
adding flavouring and colouring agents to said hydrophilic
substances, said agents having been wetted to form a crumbly
mass prior to the addition of said binder material therein.
9. The process of claim 4, wherein said sugars are
selected from the group consisting of lactose, sucrose, dextrose,
glucose syrup and maltodextrin; said sugar alcohols are
selected from the group consisting of sorbitol and mannitol;
and, said inorganic salt is sodium chloride.
10. The process of claim 5, wherein said native starches
are selected from the group consisting of corn starch, wheat
starch, rice starch, potato starch, tapioca starch and waxy
starches; and, said edible modified starches are pregelatinized
starches.
11. The process of claim 7, wherein said vegetable
binders are selected from the group consisting of pectin,
alginates, carrageenates, agar-agar, tragacanth, gum arabic,
guar meal and carob kernel meal.
12. A process for producing a dry product for food pre-
parations comprising:
wetting and uniformly mixing together an edible,
hydrophilic substance with water or an aqueous liquid in an
amount of about 3-30% by weight of said hydrophilic substance
to form a crumbly mass, said hydrophilic substance being a
member selected from the group consisting of sugars, sugar
alcohols, organic acids, inorganic salts, sodium glutamate
and mixtures thereof;
folding into said crumbly mass a binder material
comprising a starch or starch containing binder material
in an amount of about 25-75% by weight of said crumbly mass
until a homogeneous agglomerated blend is obtained, said
starch or starch-containing material being a member selected
from the group consisting of native starches, edible modified
starches, roast dextrin, thin-boiling starches, oxidized
starches, starch esters and starch ethers, and mixtures there-
of and said agglomerated blend comprising starch nuclei
particles surrounded by a layer of said hydrophilic sub-
stance; conditioning and drying said agglomerated blend to a
water content of about 2-10%; and, sifting said agglomerated
dry blend to obtain a dry product having a particle size of
about 100-300 microns, said dry product, when blended with
dry food ingredients, forming an instant food product capable
of being readily and easily dissolved in hot or cold water
without forming lumps.
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13. The process of claim 12, wherein said binder mate-
rial consists of starch or starch-containing material.
14. The process of claim 12, wherein said binder mate-
rial includes a binder selected from edible, high molecular
weight, vegetable binders and gelatin in an amount of up to
about 25% by weight based upon the weight of said starch
or starch-containing material.
15. The process of claim 14, wherein said binder mate-
rial includes a vegetable binder selected from the group
consisting of pectin, alginates, carrageenates, agar-agar,
tragacanth, gum arabic, guar meal and carob kernel meal.
16. The process of claim 12, 13 or 14, wherein said
sugars are selected from the group consisting of lactose,
sucrose, dextrose, glucose syrup and maltodextrin; said
sugar alcohols are selected from the group consisting of
sorbitol and mannitol; and, said inorganic salt is sodium
chloride.
17. The process of claim 12 or 13, wherein said native
starches are selected from the group consisting of corn starch
wheat starch, rice starch, potato starch, tapioca starch,
and waxy starches; and, said edible modified starches are pre-
gelatinized starches.
18. The process of claim 12, 13 or 14, which includes
adding flavoring and coloring agents to said hydrophilic
substances, said agents having been wetted to form a crumbly
mass prior to the addition of said binder material.
19. The process of claim 12 or 13, wherein said hydro-
philic substance is crystalline.
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20. A process for producing a dry edible product in the
form of agglomerates having starch nuclei, each nucleus being
embedded in a layer of a hydrophilic substance, for use in
blending with dry food ingredients to form an instant food
product capable of being readily and easily dissolved
in water without forming lumps, said process comprising the
following steps:
a) first preparing a homogeneous, conditioned mass of
hydrophilic substance, moisture and starch, said preparation
comprising the steps of:
(1) first mixing together, to form a crumbly mass
at least one edible, hydrophilic substance
with water or an aqueous liquid in an amount
of from 3% to 30% by weight based on the weight
of the hydrophilic substance, said hydrophilic
substance being a member selected from the group
consisting of sugars, sugar alcohols, organic
acids, inorganic salts, sodium glutamate and
mixtures thereof.
(2) then folding into said crumbly mass a starch
or starch-containing material in an amount of
from 25% to 75% by weight, based on the weight
of the crumbly mass, until a homogeneous mass
is obtained, and
(3) then conditioning the homogeneous mass at
ambient temperature and without agitation for
at least about twenty minutes;
b) then drying the mass to a moisture content of from
about 2% to about 10%, and
c) then sifting the dry product to a particle size of
from about 100 microns to about 300 microns;
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d) whereby discrete particles consisting essentially
of nuclei of starch or a starch-containing material with
each nucleus embedded in a layer of a hydrophilic substance
are formed.
21. The process of claim 20, wherein said starch or
starch-containing material is selected from the group con-
sisting of native ungelatinized starches, native pre-
gelatinized starches, edible modified ungelatinized starches,
edible modified pre-gelatinized starches, and mixtures there-
of.
22. The process of claim 20, wherein edible, high
molecular weight, vegetable binders, or gelatin are used in
place of said starch or starch-containing materials in an
amount of up to about 25% by weight based upon the weight of
said starch or starch-containing material.
23. The process of claim 20, 21 or 22, which includes
adding flavoring and coloring agents to said hydrophilic
substances, said agents having been wetted to form a crumbly
mass prior to the addition of said starch or starch-containing
material therein.
24. The process of claim 20, 21, or 22, wherein said
sugars are selected from the group consisting of lactose,
sucrose, dextrose, glucose syrup and maltodextrin; and, said
sugar alcohols are selected from the group consisting of
sorbitol and mannitol.
25. The process of claim 22, wherein said vegetable
binders are selected from the group consisting of pectin,
alginates, carregeenates, agar-agar, tragacanth, gum arabic,
guar meal and carob kernal meal.
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26. A dry, agglomerated, homogeneously blended product
for food preparations comprising:
discrete particles of about 100-300 microns con-
sisting essentially of nuclei of binder material each of
which is embedded in a layer of a hydrophilic substance
and having a water content of about 2-10%, said binder mate-
rial comprising starch or a starch-containing material,
said hydrophilic substance being a member selected
from the group consisting of sugars, sugar alcohols, organic
acids, inorganic salt, sodium glutamate and mixtures thereof,
said agglomerated product, when blended with dry food ingredients,
forming an instant food product which is capable of being readily
and easily dissolved in hot or cold water without forming lumps,
said binder being present in an amount of 25% to
75% by weight, based on the weight of a crumbly mass formed
by wetting and mixing together said hydrophilic substance
with an amount of water or an aqueous liquid sufficient to
from the crumbly mass.
27, The dry product of claim 26, wherein said starch
and starch-containing materials are selected from the group
consisting of native starches, edible modified starches,
roast dextrin, thin-boiling starches, oxidized starches,
starch esters and starch ethers and mixtures thereof.
28. The dry product of claim 27, wherein said native
starches are selected from the group consisting of corn
starch, wheat starch, rice starch, potato starch, tapioca
starch, and waxy starches and, said edible modified starches
are pregelatinized starches.
29. The dry product of claim 26, wherein said binder
includes up to 25% by weight, based on the weight of starch
or starch-containing material, of gelatin or an edible high
molecular weight vegetable binder selected from the group
consisting of pectin, alginates, carrageenates, agar-agar,
tragacanth, gum arabic, guar meal and carob kernel meal.
30. The dry product of claim 26, 27 or 28, wherein
said sugars are selected from the group consisting of lactose,
sucrose, dextrose, glucose syrup and maltodextrin; said sugar
alcohols are selected from the group consisting of sorbitol
and mannitol; and, said inorganic salt is sodium chloride.
31. The dry product of claim 26, 27 or 28, wherein said
hydrophilic substance also contains flavoring and coloring
agents.
32. The dry product of claim 26, wherein said binder
material consists of a starch or starch-containing material.
33. The dry product of claim 26, wherein said binder
material consists of a starch or starch-containing material
and up to 25% by weight of a binder selected from the group
consisting of vegetable binders and gelatin, based on the
weight of starch or starch-containing material.
34, A dry, agglomerated product for food preparations
comprising:
discrete particles of about 100-300 microns con-
sisting essentially of nuclei of starch or a starch-containing
material, each nucleus being embedded in a layer of a hydro-
philic substance, said particles having a water content of
about 2-10%, and having been formed by first mixing together,
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to form a crumbly mass, at least one edible, hydrophilic
substance with water or an aqueous liquid in an amount of
from 3% to 30% by weight based on the weight of the hydro-
philic substance, then folding into said crumbly mass a
starch or starch-containing material, in an amount of
from 25% to 75% by weight, based on the weight of the
crumbly mass, until a homogeneous mass is obtained and then
conditioning the homogeneous mass at ambient temperature for
at least about 20 minutes without agitation of the mass
during conditioning; then drying the mass to a moisture con-
tent of about 2-10%, and then sifting the dry product to a
particle size of 100-300 microns; said hydrophilic substance
being a member from the group consisting of sugars, sugar
alcohols, organic acids, inorganic salts, sodium glutamate and
mixtures thereof, and said agglomerated product, when blended
with dry food ingredients forming an instant food product
which is capable of being readily dissolved in water without
forming lumps.
35, The dry product of claim 34, wherein said sugars
are selected from the group consisting of lactose, sucrose,
dextrose, glucose syrup and maltodextrin; said sugar alcohols
are selected from the group consisting of sorbitol and
mannitol; and, said inorganic salt is sodium chloride.
36. The dry product of claim 34, wherein said hydro-
philic substance also contains flavoring and coloring agents.
37. The dry product of claim 34, which, when blended
with dry food ingredients, forms an instant food product
which is capable of being readily and easily dissolved in hot
water without forming lumps, wherein the starch or starch -
containing material forming the nuclei of the discrete particles
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is a member selected from the group consisting of ungelatinized
native starch, ungelatinized edible modified starch, pre-
gelatinized native starch, pregelatinized edible modified
starch, and mixtures thereof.
38. The dry product of claim 34, which, when blended
with dry food ingredients, forms an instant food product
which is capable of being readily and easily dissolved
in hot or cold water without forming lumps, wherein the
starch or starch-containing materials forming the nuclei
of the discrete particles is a member selected from the
group consisting of pregelatinized native starch, pregelatinized
edible modified starch and mixtures thereof,
39. The dry product of claim 34, wherein the nuclei of
the particles contain, in addition to the starch or starch-
containing material, up to about 25% by weight, based upon
the weight of the starch or starch-containing material of
gelatin or one or more edible high molecular weight vege-
table binders.
40. The dry product of claim 39, wherein said vege-
table binders are selected from the group consisting of
pectin, alginates, carrageenates, agar-agar, tragacanth,
gum arabic, guar meal and carob kernel meal.
41. An instant food preparation comprising the dry pro-
duct of claim 26, 27 or 28, in association with dry food
ingredients.
42. An instant food preparation comprising the dry pro-
duct of claim 37, 38 or 39, in association with dry food
ingredients.
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