Why is temperature control so important inside a food processing machinery for cooking shrimp?

MALMÖ, Sweden - Jan. 23, 2019 - PRLog -- Shrimp is generally one of the most difficult food products to be frozen, and processors need to use a performant food processing machinery in order to deliver the best possible results. Luckily for them, the OctoFrostTM IF Shrimp Cooker is the latest technological innovation on the market OctoFrost's patented 3-temperature zones allow  the processors to spare the shrimp from overcooking, while also obtaining the highest yield.

This food processing machinery uses a rain shower system, which enables the fastest transfer of heat and a better control of the temperature, up to 0.2 degrees Celsius of the set value. Furthermore, the water falls on the shrimp only by gravitation, which means the products' quality is not compromised and the hygiene of the shrimp is also secured. In addition, for even more flexibility, the OctoFrostTM IF Cooker has three infeed options: belt, bulk, and tray infeed.

Because of the 3-temperature zones, producers can start with a higher temperature in the first zone, decreasing it in the second and third ones. This creates a so-called "flat belly temperature curve", enabling the heat to travel to the core of the shrimp without overcooking its surface. The first zone of this food processing machinery is equipped with an infeed flume, so the surface of shrimp is cooked in a matter of seconds while being plunged into hot water. This coagulates the protein on the surface, while trapping the moisture inside.

In the second zone of this food processing machinery, temperature is reduced by 2 or 3 degrees Celsius, while the shrimp travels on the belt and is evenly cooked by the rain shower. The third zone is the longest, where the water temperature is decreased even more. This allows the core of the shrimp to reach the temperature of 73 degrees Celsius, while also decreasing the temperature at the surface, in order to prevent over-cooking. This step increases product quality and yield, while also preventing black spots (melanosis), foaming, and curling.

The accurate temperature control inside the food processing machinery is essential in order to obtain a high-quality shrimp. Traditional and forced-convection steam cookers can't obtain a perfect control of the temperature and, additionally, the steam has a slower heat transfer. That means higher cooking temperatures and longer cooking time are needed in order to obtain the desired core temperature. This will ultimately translate in overcooked shrimp. Actually, if temperatures reach more than 80 degrees Celsius, overcooking, curling, and loss of protein will occur. Generally, steam cooking temperatures inside these systems reach anywhere between 80 to 95 degrees Celsius.

Compared to the traditional cookers, the OctoFrostTM IF Shrimp Cooker is a food processing machinery which gives processors full flexibility and the possibility to control the entire cooking process. Furthermore, the set temperatures can be stored in a recipe in the touch-panel, for every single batch of shrimp. In conclusion, control is key when cooking shrimp, and the OctoFrostTM Cooker masters the temperature control in every zone.

For more info go to https://www.octofrost.com/