GB2237177A

GB2237177A - Coating pastry with oil

Info

Publication number: GB2237177A
Application number: GB8922171A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Tak Hou Lin
Original assignee: Winner Food Products Ltd
Current assignee: Winner Food Products Ltd
Priority date: 1989-10-02
Filing date: 1989-10-02
Publication date: 1991-05-01
Anticipated expiration: 2009-10-02
Also published as: JPH0722681U; GB8922171D0; JPH03119943A; JP2507588Y2; GB2237177B; HK93195A

Abstract

A web of uncooked pastry, for use in making chinese spring rolls, is coated on one surface with edible oil, so that after it has been cut into sections which are stacked, the sections can be readily separated. The coating is carried out by a machine in which heated oil is continually circulated from a reservoir in a lower cabinet (5) to a trough (8) in an upper cabinet, the level of oil in the trough being maintained by a weir through which excess oil overflows back into the reservoir. Oil is transferred from the trough by a train of rollers (9, 10 and 11) to one surface of a web of pastry (27), passing through a nip between the roller (11) and a back-up roller (12). Thereafter the web is fed onto a conveyor (28) along which it is carried to a guillotine and stacker. <IMAGE>

Description

flESCRTTTON bW-COATING MACHINE ANn METHOD In the food industry, for example in the preparation of spring rolls in chinese cuisine, it is sometimes necessary to produce a web of uncooked pastry, that is then cut transversely into sections, which are stacked and possibly deep frozen, prior to subsequent use. Difficulties arrive in separating the stacked pastry sections and the object of the invention is to provide a machine by which this can be facilitated.

According to the present invention, a machine, for applying a coating of oil to one surface of a web of uncooked pastry, comprises a trough at a higher level than an oil reservoir which is provided with a thermostatically controlled heater for heating oil in the reservoir to a predetermined temperature range; a pump for pumping heated oil from the reservoir up to the trough and a weir associated with the trough and leading via a return pipe back to the reservoir, so as to maintain a continual recycling of oil between the reservoir and trough and a constant level of oil in the trough; a train of synchronously rotated rollers for conveying oil from a pick-up roller, which dips below the oil level in the trough, to an applicator roller which cooperates with a back-up roller to define a nip; and at least one guide roller for feeding a web of pastry through the nip so that one surface of the pastry web is coated with oil by the applicator roller.

This arrangement provides an efficient system for coating one surface of an uncooked pastry web with oil so that, when the web is subsequently cut into sections and the sections are stacked with a coated surface of one section contiguous with an uncoated surface of a adjacent section, the sections can subsequently be readily separated from one another, even after deep freezing and defrosting.

Preferably, the pick-up and applicator rollers both have stainless steel peripheral surfaces, both of which contact a rubber periphery of an intermediate transfer roller. The transfer roller is preferably adjustable perpendicular to its axis to adjust the amount of oil transfered from the pick-up roller to the applicator roller and hence to the web.

The back-up roller also preferably has a periphery made of rubber and may be adjustable perpendicular to its axis to adjust the width of the nip to accommodate different thicknesses of pastry.

The process may further be automated if the machine is associated with a conveyor for conveying the coated web to a cutting machine, for cutting the web transversely into sections, and is provided with a second guide roller for guiding the coated web from the nip onto the conveyor.

The invention also includes a method of coating one surface of a web of uncooked pastry with an edible oil, utilizing a machine according to any one of the preceding claims, and subsequently cutting the web transversely into discrete sections which are stacked with the coated surface of each section contiguous with the uncoated surface of an adjacent section.

The edible oil may be any kind of shortening oil, but palm shortening edible oil is preferred.

An example of a machine constructed into accordance with the present invention is illustrated diagrammatically in the accompanying drawings, in which: Figures 1 and 2 are side views; and, Figures 3 and 4 are front views.

The illustrated machine has a lower cabinet 5 containing an oil reservoir 6 and an upper cabinet 7 which supports an elongate trough 8, a stainless steel pick-up roller 9, a hard rubber transfer roller 10, a stainless steel applicator roller 11, a hard rubber back-up roller 12, and first and second guide rollers 13 and 14, all of which extend parallel to one another between side walls of the cabinet 7.

Edible oil is heated by an electrical heating element which is controlled by a thermostat 6A within the reservoir 6. The oil is continually pumped by a pump 15, which is driven by an electric motor 16, through supply lines 17 to the trough 8, in which a constant level of oil is maintained by an overflow weir 19. Excess oil passes back from the weir through a return line 20 to the reservoir 6.

The trough can be by-passed by means of a line 21 upon closing of a valve 22 and opening of a valve 23. As shown particularly in Figure 2, the roller 9 dips into the trough 8 and transfers oil via the transfer roller 10, which is radially adjustable to control its pressure on the rollers 9 and 11, to the applicator roller 11. The nip between the applicator roller 11 and the back-up roller 12 is adjustable by means of a screw threaded adjustment 24. A pivoted scraper blade 25 is urged by a spring 26 against the roller 11 to keep it clean.

In use, a web 27 of the pastry from a pastry maker is guided over the guide roller 13 and fed into the nip between the rollers 11 and 12, wherein the right hand face of the web, as seen in Figure 2, is coated with oil from the applicator roller 11. The web is guided by the roller 14 onto the upper surface of an endless conveyor 28, which is driven by a drive roller 29, and which is guided by guide rollers 30 along an upwardly inclined frame 31, which is pivoted at one end 32, and the inclination of which is ajustable by means of extensible leg 33, the lower end of which rests on the ground alongside the lower cabinet 5. At the downstream end of the conveyor 28, the web of pastry passes through a cyclical guillotine, which periodically cuts the web transversely into separate sections, which are then automatically stacked one upon the other for subsequent use, or for freezing and storage.

For use in making spring roll pastry, the oil temperature is controlled to lie in the range of 75 to 800C. The rollers 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 29 are all synchronously driven, from another motor 34 via gearing and drive chains 35, to provide a common linear peripheral speed corresponding to the linear speed of feed of the pastry web of 300-350 inches per minute of the applicator roller 11.

Claims

1. A machine for applying a coating of an edible oil on a surface of a web of uncooked pastry, the machine comprising a trough at a higher level than an oil reservoir, which is provided with a thermostatically controlled heater, for heating oil in the reservoir to a predetermined temperature range; a pump for pumping the heated oil up to the trough and a weir associated with the trough and leading via a return pipe back to the reservoir so as to maintain a continual recycling of oil between the reservoir and trough and a constant level of oil in the trough; a train of synchronously rotated rollers for conveying oil from a pick-up roller, which dips below the oil level in the trough, to an applicator roller which cooperates with a back-up roller to define a nip; and at least one guide roller for feeding a web of pastry to the nip so that one surface of the pastry web is covered with oil.

2. A machine according to claim 1, in which the peripheries of both the pick-up and applicator rollers are made of stainless steel, which contact an intermediate transfer roller having a periphery made of rubber.

3. A machine according to claim 2, in which the transfer roller is adjustable perpendicular to its axis to adjust the oil transfer from the pick-up roller to the applicator roller and hence to the web.

4. A machine according to claim 2 or claim 3, in which the back-up roller has a periphery made of rubber.

5. A machine according to claim 4, in which the back-up roller is adjustable perpendicular to its axis to adjust the width of the nip.

6. A machine according to any one of the preceding claims, which is associated with a conveyor for conveying the coated web to a cutting machine; and which is provided with a second guide roller for guiding the coated web from the nip onto the conveyor.

7. A machine according to claim 1, substantially as described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

8. A method of coating one surface of a web of uncooked pastry with an edible oil, the method comprising operating a machine according to any one of the preceding claims and feeding the pastry web through the nip; subsequently cutting the web transversely into discrete sections; and stacking the sections with a coated surface of each section contiguous with an uncoated surface of an adjacent section in the stack.

9. A method of coating an uncooked pastry web with edible oil, substantially as described with reference to the accompanying drawings.