Corn flakes processing and manufacturing

Ready-to-eat (RTE) breakfast cereals originated in the United States in the late 19th century. Cornflakes are the product obtained from dehulled, degermed and cooked corn (Zea mays L.) by flaking partially drying and toasting. Various kinds of vitamins and mineral substances can be added.  Maize, the main raw material, is itself a corn grain. Corn flakes have very good taste. 

Corn flakes can be manufactured either of the two white or yellow corns. Maize is cleaned, polished and milled to remove the germ and bran. The milling process removes the corn kernels from the cobs and turns them into flaking sized 'grits'. The first step in converting raw flaking grits into corn flakes is to mix them with a flavor solution containing sugar, salt, malt syrup and other ingredients in water.

The broken pieces, which are comparatively big in size are cooked under pressure in a rotary steam cooker at temperatures exceeding 100°C. The grits and flavor solution may be loaded simultaneously, or the grits may be added first and pre-steamed, followed by flavor addition and mixing. 

Maize is cooked for about 2 hours along with the flavoring agents, if necessary. During cooking additional water is incorporated in the form of steam which condenses and the water content in the batch rises to 30-35%.

Hence to reduce the moisture content to about 15% to 20%, pre heated air is blown. The dried material is kept in the tempering tank to enable the residual moisture to become distributed equally. 

The tempered material is now passed through the heavy-duty flaking machine fitted with magnetic separator and water-cooling system. For flaking of corn grits, roll surface temperature is 45°C. Temperatures over 50°Ccause excessive roll wear and product sticking to the roll surface.

The maize flakes are then roasted in suitable ovens. The air in the ovens is heated by 600°C 0 gas flames and the flakes are tossed around in a rotating drum. The drum is angled so that the flakes whirl around and pass through it quite quickly, and stops them spending too long in the fierce heat.

The roasted flakes are then graded and packed in polythene containers or other suitable packaging materials.

Corn flakes processing and manufacturing 

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Production of sausage

Sausage is derived in the latin word ‘Salsus’ meaning salted or preserved by salting or ‘Salsicia’ meaning something salted. Sausage is a convenient food available in a great number of varieties and flavors. Sausages are an excellent source of high quality protein, containing all the essential amino acids in appropriate amounts necessary for growth, maintenance and repair of body tissue.

Ingredients. Fresh and high-quality meat such as lamb, beef, pork, mutton and poultry also cuts from head and leftover cuts may be used. Often game meats can be used to make sausage. Other ingredients such as salt (addition to taste, extract some proteins from meat, enhances flavor, reduce microbiological spoilage and increases water holding), water ice (assist the process of mixing and help salt to solubilize meat proteins), curing agents (necessary to inhibit production and growth of the deadly toxin, provide pink color and enhance flavor), spices (add flavor to the product) and binder (promote fat and moisture retention) and extender (reduce formulation costs).

Raw material intake is a critical control point in sausage production since it acts as a barrier or filtration stage preventing goods of inferior quality entering the process.

The lean meat should be well trimmed to a level of less than 10 percent of non-trimmable fat and connective tissue, the trimmed lean meat thus being practically free from sinews and gristle and entirely free from ligament, bone and cartilage particles. Proper dressing and rapid refrigeration will limit bacterial growth and reduce the chance of getting a foodborne illness.

Grinding. The key to doing a good job grinding is to use sharp blades and plates that match. The sausage may be ground twice, especially if two meats, such as a fat meat and a lean meat, are being used. The fist-size chunks of lean meats are first ground by running them through a 3-6 mm grinder plate while fat trimmings or fatty tissues are reduced through a 6-9 mm grinder plate. Grinding improves the uniformity of the product by distributing the ingredients and making the particles the same size.

Mincing. After grinding, the meat is minced in to a very fine particle size for easy protein extraction. Proteins have the function of binding the water surrounding fat droplets and keeping them dispersed.

Filling. Natural casing (made from the intestines of slaughter animals) as well as casings made from modified collagen or cellulose are most frequently used. Fresh sausages may also be stuffed into a small diameter artificial casing, or may be extruded into a short, large diameter plastic casing called a “chub” pack, usually containing 1 to 2 pounds of meat. Fibrous casings are more suitable for summer sausage and similar products because of their greater strength and the variety of sizes available. They are permeable to smoke and moisture and can easily be removed from the finished product.

Casings. Casings, also known as skins, used in sausage manufacturing to achieve their primary significance in portioning. They are broadly divided into two types, namely natural and artificial. Intestines of pigs or sheep are used in making natural casings.

Artificial casings are now made with collagen, cellulose and plastic materials to suit a wide range of applications. Through a series of mechanical and chemical actions, collagen is extracted from the connective tissue of animals and used for manufacturing casings.

Cooking. There are many methods of cooking: by immersing in the cooking vat, hot showering that is conducted in a smokehouse equipped with shower nozzles, hot showering in separate hot water spray cabinets to which sausages are moved immediately after smoking, cooking by dry heat by raising the smokehouse temperature and giving only a final brief hot water shower, cooking in tight boxes into which live steam is injected, etc.

Sausage is smoked and heated in order to pasteurize it and extend its shelf life, as well as to impart a smoky flavor and improve its appearance. Smoking and heating also fixes the color and causes protein to move to the surface of the sausage so it will hold its shape when the casing is removed.

Cooling and packaging. The sausage should showered or soaked in water till reach an internal temperature of 38-40°F, then remove the casing and cooled to 4°F for packaging. The product may be wrapped in a gas impermeable plastic, and placed into refrigerated storage or display. The specific packaging will vary according to the needs of the end user, however, the processor must follow hygienic standards when packaging any sausage product to avoid contaminating the product.
Production of sausage

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Alkaline noodles processing

The ingredients (300 g flour, 96 ml water, Na2CO3 - 2.7 g and K2CO3 -0.3 g) are mixed in a mixer for 1 min at slow speed, 1 min at fast speed m and then for 3 min at slow speed.

The dough balls are sheeted between steel rollers, 2.75 mm apart.

The dough sheet is often relax the gluten structure before one or two combined dough sheets are passed through a further sequence of 3-7 rollers. The clearance successively reduced to 2.5, 2.0 and 1.5 mm. It is to reduce the sheet to its final thickness.

Sheets are cut into strands using slotted cutting roles to produce noodles of 0.6 – 6.0 mm wide, which are then cut to lengths of 180 – 260 mm.

After standing for 3 h at 25 degree C, the noodles are placed in wire mesh and cooled in boiling water until the uncooked core has just disappeared (about 5 min). The noodle are cooled and then coated with oil to keep the strands from sticking together.

Cooked noodles, packed in plastic pouches with a packet of soup or sauce, are a convenience food.
Alkaline noodles processing 

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Manufacturing of instant tea

The commercial production of instant teas began in the 1940s, and this form of tea has grown in popularity in the United States to the extent that it now comprises 42% of tea sales in the country.

These products are hot and cold water soluble, iced tea concentrates, carbonated tea etc.

Instant tea processing begins with extraction of the selected tea leaf blend. Generally, a fermented black tea type is used, chosen of reddish color, relative freedom from haze and strong flavor when brewed.

It also may be made from semi-fermented or green dried tea leaves, it may also be used of partially fermented undried leaf.

About 10 parts of water are combined with 1 part of tea leaves by weight in the extractors, and extraction is carried out at temperature between about 60 and 100 ° C for 10 minutes.

In the case of instant green tea it is also necessary to ensure the leaf is heated to at least 70 °C to inactivate enzymes.

The final extracts contains about 4% solids, which represents approximately 85% of the soluble solids in the leaves.

Concentration of the extract is effected by evaporation of the water under reduced pressure at a moderately elevated temperature.

Spray dryers used in the production of instant tea usually complete the drying operation with the drying chamber, producing a powder with a moisture of 3-5%.

Manufacturing of instant tea

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