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Overview on the freeze-chilling of foods.

Author(s) : GORMLEY T. R., FAGAN J. D., REDMOND G. A.

Summary

Freeze-chilling of food consists of freezing and frozen storage followed by thawing and then retailing at chill storage temperatures. It offers logistic, transportation and storage advantages to food manufacturers. Freeze-chilling has particular application to ready-meals components and to full ready-meals. The components mashed potato (three cultivars), steamed carrots, steamed green beans and steamed salmon were found suitable for freeze-chilling and their quality and sensory properties compared favourably with those of their frozen, chilled and fresh counterparts. Similarly for lasagne, tagliatelle and breaded chicken ready-meals. Freeze-chilling was also suitable for raw pre-packaged fish fillets of whiting, mackerel and farmed salmon. Typical shelf lives were in the order of 3-5 days at 4 ºC. Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) was combined with freeze chilling but had little impact on shelf life extension of the ready-meal components/ready-meals.
However, MAP increased the shelf life of the freeze chilled fish fillets by 30-40%, especially in the case of black scabbard. Successful tempering (thawing) trials on freeze-chilled products were conducted in a special commercial tempering unit capable of thawing 3000 ready-meals overnight.
Best-practice thawing procedures were established and the importance of stacking configurations for outer boxes (each with a number of lasagne ready-meals) was noted. Trials on the re-freezing of freeze-chilled products indicated that re-freezing is an option provided the normal storage protocols for frozen and chilled foods are practised.

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  • Original title: Overview on the freeze-chilling of foods.
  • Record ID : 30028246
  • Languages: English
  • Source: EUROFREEZE: Individual Quick Freezing of Foods - Workshop Proceedings, Sofia, Bulgaria, January 13-15, 2005.
  • Publication date: 2005/01

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