TWI684423B - A steam cooking device and method - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention discloses a high efficient-cooking device comprising: a food chamber for containing foodstuffs and having a normal atmospheric pressure; a saturated vapor generating device having a vapor chamber for generating and accumulating a high pressure saturated vapor that has a pressure greater than the atmospheric pressure; a saturated vapor releasing device, in communication with the vapor chamber, having an outlet connected to the food chamber for releasing the high pressure saturated vapor to the foodstuffs, and keeping at a saturated vapor point when reaching the foodstuffs; and a steam discharging device for discharging the water vapor mixture, generated by the pressure-released saturated vapor due to the release of latent heat, out from the food chamber. Thereby, a high efficient cooking apparatus and method capable of quickly and efficiently obtaining an optimum cooking effect with low energy consumption, reduced cooking time, and reduced loss of freshness of the foodstuffs can be obtained.

Description

Steaming device and steaming method

The invention relates to a food cooking device and method, in particular to a cooking device and method which can utilize the latent heat of vapor to achieve efficient cooking of food.

At present, there are roughly three types of steam cooking equipment on the market, one is the use of atmospheric steam, such as common electronic pots, electric steamers, steam ovens, etc., and for example, China Patent No. CN202681613U "Energy Saving Circulating Steamer", etc. Circulation and energy saving of water vapor, using air pump as kinetic energy. These devices are used to generate steam by heating the water, and then use the slight pressure difference and heat convection to allow the steam to contact the food and transfer the heat energy in the steam to the food.

However, in this type of equipment, after the water is heated to form steam, most of it is in contact with food before reaching the saturation steam point, and the steam cannot contain the maximum latent heat content, and the steam contained in the steam The latent heat will be absorbed by the water molecules in the water vapor, and even if part of it is absorbed by the food, it will form a water film on the surface of the food, so that the subsequent heat energy will heat the water film to make it vaporize, rather than apply On food. Therefore, overall, its thermal efficiency is not high, the cooking speed is slow, most of the heat energy used is wasted on heating the condensed water film or the steam after releasing latent heat, and when cooking larger foods, it often takes too long to appear food Too old and too hard.

The second type of steam cooking equipment is a steamer that uses superheated steam, such as a water wave oven, etc., which uses the higher temperature of superheated vapor to achieve the phenomenon of surface heating and evaporation and drying of surface moisture. For example, Chinese Patent No. CN105078219B "Ultra-High Temperature Continuous Steamer" and US Patent No. US20070227364A1 "Steam Cooker", which use superheated steam to achieve the purpose of "steaming".

However, although equipment such as a water wave furnace heats water vapor above the saturation vapor point and becomes superheated steam, for example, at a high temperature of 350 degrees Celsius, it is difficult to control the steam state under the condition of superheated steam, so superheated air is used for When the ingredients are on, it will easily cause the skin to scorch, which is more suitable for baking. It is not suitable for people who have cooking needs such as steamed fish; even if the prior art has cooled the superheated steam to a point near saturation temperature, such as the aforementioned US patent However, because the saturated steam converted from superheated steam has little water content, it is still not conducive to cooking. This is because under the thermal equilibrium state, superheated steam and liquid water cannot coexist. Before the superheated steam loses its energy to the condensation point (ie, the point of saturated vapor), it still exists in a gas state and fails to release latent heat. Even if the superheated steam releases part of the heat energy to the water on the surface of the food in the superheated state, as long as the evaporation is greater than the condensation in the dynamic equilibrium state, the water on the surface of the food will be taken away by vaporization to dryness.

The third type of cooking equipment is a cooking device such as a pressure cooker, which puts the steam under high pressure to obtain a high temperature that is higher than the saturated steam temperature of normal pressure, so that the food can be heated at a higher temperature. However, like a steamer, the action is to heat the water into steam, and then make the steam get a higher temperature under high pressure, and the food is already heated during the temperature rise, so most of the heat energy is used To heat water or water in steam (a mixture of water and steam), there are those who do not reach the saturation liquid point, that is, the food is heated, and it is impossible to achieve a quick use of the saturated steam contained in the ingredients on the food, and because of cooking The food ingredient room is under high pressure, and improper operation when opening and closing the food ingredient room is also dangerous.

In view of the above deficiencies, the object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method that can fully utilize the latent heat of saturated vapor to cook food, especially an efficient cooking that can exert the latent heat benefit of saturated vapor under normal pressure Device and method.

In order to achieve the purpose of the invention, the present invention provides a cooking device, which includes: A food compartment, which is used to contain food and has an atmospheric pressure; A saturated steam generating device having a steam chamber, and used to generate and accumulate a high-pressure saturated steam greater than the normal pressure in the steam chamber; A saturated steam spraying device communicates with the steam chamber and has an outlet connected to the food material chamber for releasing the high-pressure saturated steam to the food material and releasing it when it reaches the surface of the food material Saturated vapor point, so that the food is heated by the latent heat released by decompressed saturated vapor; and, A water vapor discharge device is used to discharge the water vapor mixture generated by releasing the latent heat from the pressure-releasing saturated steam in the food material chamber, so that the new pressure-releasing saturated steam can be continuously applied to The ingredients.

In order to achieve the purpose of the invention, the present invention also provides a cooking method, which includes: Provide a food material compartment, which is used to contain food materials, and has an atmospheric pressure of atmospheric pressure; A high-pressure saturated steam generating step for generating and accumulating a high-pressure saturated steam greater than the normal pressure in a steam chamber; In a cooking step, the high-pressure saturated steam is released from the steam chamber to the food material for pressure release, and when it reaches the surface of the food material, it is still at the point of saturated steam, so that the food material is heated by the latent heat released by the pressure-released saturated steam ;as well as, A water vapor discharging step, the steam mixture generated by releasing the latent heat from the pressure-releasing saturated steam in the food material chamber is discharged out of the food material chamber, so that the new pressure-releasing saturated steam can be continuously applied to the food material .

Furthermore, in the cooking device and method disclosed in the present invention, the release amount of the high-pressure saturated vapor and the discharge amount of the water vapor mixture are controlled so that the ambient temperature of the food ingredient chamber is maintained at a greater than or equal to The saturated vapor temperature of the normal pressure.

According to the disclosed device and method, precise planning can be achieved for the generation, utilization, and recovery of saturated steam to achieve the best cooking efficiency. Therefore, when the high-pressure saturated steam with more water molecules than superheated steam is introduced into When pressing the food material chamber, the steam flow caused by the pressure drop can ensure that the saturated steam can be quickly sprayed onto the food material without the need of the pressurizing fan and other equipment, and it is still saturated with latent heat before being sprayed onto the food material. In the vapor state, the latent heat is released immediately after contact with the food, so that the latent heat can penetrate the food and act on the moisture in the food, and cook the food without coking. Furthermore, with the steam exhaust device, the steam mixture that releases latent heat and is scattered in the food room can be effectively exhausted and recovered, or its heat energy can be recovered to avoid hindering the continuous introduction of new saturated steam, making the new The saturated steam can be continuously introduced and sprayed onto the food, so that the food is continuously heated by the latent heat of the saturated steam. In this way, under low energy consumption, reduced cooking time, and reduced loss of freshness of the food, the connective tissue of the food can be quickly and effectively destroyed, making the food soft and delicious, which is different from ordinary cooking.

In order to make the above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention more comprehensible, preferred embodiments are described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which are described in detail below. However, those of ordinary knowledge in the field of the present invention should be able to understand that these detailed descriptions and specific embodiments listed for implementing the present invention are only used to illustrate the present invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the patent application of the present invention.

In the following, the preferred embodiments according to the present invention will be listed in conjunction with the drawings to explain the components and steps of the steamer device and method disclosed in the present invention, and the effects achieved by them. However, the relevant components, shapes, and settings of the cooking device shown in the drawings are only used to illustrate the technical features of the present invention, and do not limit the present invention.

FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of the appearance of an efficient cooking device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the cooking device 1 disclosed in this embodiment includes: a food container 10 for holding food and having an atmospheric pressure; a saturated steam generating device 20 having a steam chamber 21 and In order to generate and accumulate a high-pressure saturated steam higher than the normal pressure in the steam chamber 21; a saturated steam discharge device 30 communicates with the steam chamber (not shown), and has a communication with the food container An outlet (not shown) is used to release the high-pressure saturated steam to the food material due to the pressure relief, so that the pressure-relieved steam is still at the point of saturated steam when it reaches the surface of the food material, so that the food material is released from pressure Heated by the latent heat released by the saturated steam; and, a water vapor discharge device 40 for discharging the water vapor mixture generated by the release of the latent heat from the decompressed saturated steam in the food material chamber, into the food material chamber, So that the new pressure release saturated steam can be continuously applied to the food material. In addition, the steam device 1 also has an operation panel 2 containing a controller (not shown), and a door 3 for entering and exiting food, and in a preferred embodiment, the cooking device 1 further includes a not shown in FIG. 1 However, the thermal energy recovery device 50 shown in FIG. 2 will be described later.

FIG. 2 further shows a schematic connection diagram of the components in a cooking device according to an embodiment of the invention. As shown in FIG. 2, in the food material compartment 10, there is a shelf (not labeled) for placing the food material 11, above which is a saturated vapor discharge device 30 and below is a water vapor discharge device 40. The ambient pressure of the food ingredient chamber 10 is in a normal pressure state, which is generally atmospheric pressure, about 1 bar. The saturated vapor discharge device 30 communicates with the vapor chamber 21 of the saturated vapor generation device 20 and controls the amount of high-pressure saturated vapor to be released into the food material chamber 10. Moreover, in order to release the high-pressure saturated vapor to the food material chamber 10 through the outlet, and quickly reach the food material 11, in a preferred embodiment, the distance between the outlet and the food material 11 can be adjusted.

In addition to the steam chamber 21, the saturated steam generating device 20 also has a first water tank 22 located in the steam chamber 21, and a temperature controlled heater Qin for heating the water tank to make the steam chamber contain and accumulate a It has a saturated vapor temperature corresponding to its high-pressure pressure, such as 2 bar and 120°C, and the high-pressure pressure means 0.1 bar to 8 bar higher than normal pressure. The first water tank 22 is used to hold water and to be heated by the heater Qin. The heater Qin can have many forms. In a preferred embodiment, it is an electric heating rod. The heating amount of the heater Qin can be matched with steam. The temperature in the chamber 21 is adjusted so that the temperature and pressure in the vapor chamber 21 are maintained at 120°C and 2 bar, respectively, that is, in a state of high-pressure saturated vapor that is greater than atmospheric pressure. This is because according to the saturated vapor table, it is known that it has a saturation temperature of 120°C at 2 bar. In the saturated vapor state, the vapor is colorless and transparent, and the vapor quality of the saturated vapor is greater than or equal to 90%.

FIG. 3 shows a schematic diagram for explaining the latent heat of saturated steam used in this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 3, the saturation temperature is 100°C at 100Kpa, that is, about atmospheric pressure and normal pressure of 1 bar. Between the saturated vapor point A and the saturated liquid point B of 100 ℃, there is a considerable latent heat, and this is a mixture of saturated water and steam, which is called water vapor or water vapor mixture here. Under normal pressure, when the saturation temperature is exceeded, it becomes superheated steam. Therefore, during the heating process, as long as the first water tank 22 still contains water, and the vapor chamber 21 accumulates pressure, the saturated vapor above can be heated and boosted at the same time, but it does not become superheated vapor. In a preferred embodiment, a gas storage chamber (not shown) communicating with the steam chamber 21 and controlled may be additionally provided to accumulate high-pressure saturated steam at a desired pressure and temperature.

Returning to FIG. 2 again, the water vapor discharge device 40 is used to discharge the steam mixture which has released latent heat in the food material chamber 10, so that the internal environmental pressure of the food material chamber 10 can be continuously introduced with new high pressure or pressure relief Saturated steam can still maintain normal pressure, and its discharge, corresponding to the release of high-pressure saturated steam, is controlled by a controller (not shown), which can be appropriately controlled by the pressure sensor. Volume and discharge volume. In a modification, in addition to the water vapor discharge device 40, the cooking device 1 may further include a drainage device (not shown) at the bottom of the food material chamber 10 to discharge or recycle water that may be condensed.

As shown in FIG. 2, the discharged steam mixture is led to a thermal energy recovery device 50, which has a second water tank 51 for containing water and a steam mixture discharge pipe 52 in the second water tank , The steam mixture discharge pipe 52 communicates with the steam discharge device 40, so that the discharged steam mixture, without mixing with the water in the second water tank, recovers its heat energy to the second The heat energy of the water in the water tank 51 that can be recovered is indicated as Q _R. In a preferred embodiment, the thermal energy recovery device 50 further includes a pressurizing pump 53 for feeding the water in the second water tank 51 to the saturated steam generating device 20 under pressure, which can be controlled by the controller (not Shown), and sprayed directly into the steam chamber 21 after pressurization, or may be pressurized and injected into the first water tank 22 for generating high-pressure saturated steam. In a modified example, the discharged steam mixture may also be directly discharged into the second water tank 51 to become the water in the second water tank 51, which is directly sent to the saturated steam generating device 20 for use. Not only the heat energy in the water vapor but also the water vapor mixture is recovered, so the recovery of the heat energy includes this modification.

Through the entire connecting system shown in FIG. 2, the high-pressure saturated steam can be kept in the food container 10 because of pressure release and temperature reduction, from 2 bar to 1 bar, and enter the saturated steam point A shown in FIG. 3, and because The amount of high-pressure saturated steam released is controlled so that when the pressure-released saturated steam reaches the surface of the food, it is still at the point of saturated steam A, so that the food can be subjected to a steam that releases all latent heat from the point of saturated steam A heating. Among them, as shown in Figure 3, although the superheated steam used in the water wave furnace can also enter the saturated steam point A by lowering the temperature, as mentioned above, after entering the superheated steam state, due to the relationship between the specific volume, the water vapor content Much lower than high-pressure saturated steam, which is not conducive to cooking this cooking method.

In addition, in a preferred embodiment, in addition to controlling the release amount of high-pressure saturated steam to reach the surface of the food, it is still at the point of saturated steam, the amount of high-pressure saturated steam can also be discharged, and the The discharge volume of the water vapor mixture is controlled so that the ambient temperature of the food ingredient chamber is maintained at a saturated vapor temperature greater than or equal to the normal pressure. Since the pressure-releasing vapor is still maintained at the saturated vapor point when it is sprayed onto the surface of the food material, it can still effectively release latent heat from the saturated vapor point A; if the amount of release can be so large that the ambient temperature of the food material chamber reaches the saturation temperature quickly, That is, about 100°C, even if the subsequent release of high-pressure steam is reduced, instead of contacting the surface of the food material in a jet state, the released pressure-releasing steam can be maintained at the saturated vapor point when it diffuses to the surface of the food material, and The purpose of maximum latent heat for efficient heating. Therefore, in practice, this amount of release can vary according to the situation or the stage.

According to the foregoing embodiment, the present invention also discloses a cooking method as shown in FIG. 4. That is, the cooking method according to one embodiment of the present invention will include the following steps: First, in step S1, a food ingredient chamber is provided, which is used to contain food ingredients and has an ambient pressure of atmospheric pressure; , A high-pressure saturated steam generation step S2 is used to generate and accumulate a high-pressure saturated steam greater than the normal pressure in a steam chamber; then, enter a cooking step S3, the high-pressure saturated steam from the steam chamber to The food material is released by pressure release, so that the pressure release steam is still at the saturation vapor point when it reaches the surface of the food material, so that the food material is heated by the latent heat released by the pressure release saturated steam; and, a water vapor discharge step S4 is performed in time In the food ingredient chamber, the steam mixture generated by releasing the latent heat of the pressure-releasing saturated steam is discharged out of the food ingredient chamber, so that the new pressure-releasing saturated steam can be continuously applied to the food ingredient. And in a preferred embodiment, the steam discharge step S4 can be combined with the high pressure steam release amount of the cooking step S3, and the discharge amount of the high pressure saturated steam and the discharge amount of the steam mixture are controlled such that The ambient temperature of the ingredients compartment is maintained at a saturated vapor temperature greater than or equal to the normal pressure, so as to obtain the most economical heating method.

In summary, through the technical ideas disclosed in the various embodiments disclosed in the present invention, a cooking device and method having the best cooking efficiency and allowing the ingredients to be continuously heated by the complete latent heat of saturated steam can be obtained with low energy consumption 2. A cooking device and method for reducing the cooking time and reducing the loss of freshness of the ingredients to quickly and effectively obtain an optimal cooking effect.

Finally, it is emphasized that the constituent elements disclosed in the foregoing disclosed embodiments of the present invention are for illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the case. The substitution or change of other equivalent elements should also be covered by the scope of the patent application of the case.

1‧‧‧ Steaming device

2‧‧‧Control Panel

3‧‧‧ door

11‧‧‧Food ingredients

20‧‧‧Saturated steam generator

21‧‧‧Steam room

22‧‧‧First sink

30‧‧‧Saturated steam spraying device

40‧‧‧Water vapor discharge device

50‧‧‧heat energy recovery device

51‧‧‧Second sink

52‧‧‧Steam mixing pipe

53‧‧‧Pump

A‧‧‧Saturated vapor point

B‧‧‧saturated liquid point

Qin ‧‧‧ heater

QR‧‧‧recovery heat

S1, S2, S3, S4‧‧‧

FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of the appearance of a cooking device according to an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of connection of components of a cooking device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 3 shows a schematic diagram of latent heat for explaining the benefits of the present invention. FIG. 4 shows a flowchart of a cooking method according to an embodiment of the invention.

10‧‧‧Food room

11‧‧‧Food ingredients

20‧‧‧Saturated steam generator

21‧‧‧Steam room

22‧‧‧First sink

30‧‧‧Saturated steam spraying device

40‧‧‧Water vapor discharge device

50‧‧‧heat energy recovery device

51‧‧‧Second sink

52‧‧‧Steam mixing pipe

53‧‧‧Pump

Qin‧‧‧heater

Q _R ‧‧‧ heat recovery

Claims (9)

A cooking device includes: a food material chamber for containing food materials and having an atmospheric pressure of atmospheric pressure; a saturated steam generating device having a steam chamber and for generating and accumulating a high pressure greater than the atmospheric pressure Saturated steam is in the steam chamber; a saturated steam spraying device communicates with the steam chamber and has an outlet connected to the food material chamber for releasing the high-pressure saturated steam to the food material and releasing The saturated vapor released from the pressure release reaches the surface of the food material at the saturated vapor point and releases latent heat from the saturated vapor point to the food material to a saturated liquid point, so that the food material is directly heated by the latent heat released by the pressure release saturated vapor; and A water vapor discharge device, when the saturated vapor reaches the saturated liquid point due to the release of latent heat, the saturated vapor turns into a water vapor mixture, and the water vapor mixture moves to the water vapor discharge device, the water vapor discharge device will The water vapor mixture is discharged out of the food material chamber, so that the new pressure-saturated saturated steam can be continuously applied to the food material, so that the food material continues to be heated by the latent heat released at the saturation vapor point to the saturated liquid point. As in the device of claim 1, the release amount of the high-pressure saturated steam and the discharge amount of the water vapor mixture are controlled so that the ambient temperature of the food ingredient chamber is maintained at a value greater than/equal to the constant The pressure of saturated steam. The device as claimed in item 1 of the patent scope, wherein the saturated steam generating device further includes a first water tank located in the steam chamber, and a temperature-controlled heater that heats the water tank to make the steam chamber contain The high-pressure saturated steam having a saturated steam temperature corresponding to the high-pressure pressure. The device as claimed in item 1 of the patent scope also includes a heat energy recovery device, which has a second water tank for containing water and a water vapor mixing pipe in the second water tank, the water vapor is mixed The body discharge pipe communicates with the water vapor discharge device to recover the heat energy of the discharged water vapor mixture in the water in the second water tank. For example, the device claimed in item 4 of the patent application, the thermal energy recovery device further includes a pressure pump for pressurizing the water in the second water tank to the saturated steam generating device. A cooking method includes: providing a food material chamber for containing food materials and having an atmospheric pressure of atmospheric pressure; a high-pressure saturated steam generation step for generating and accumulating a high-pressure saturated steam greater than the atmospheric pressure in A steam chamber; a cooking step, the high-pressure saturated steam is released from the steam chamber to the food material to release pressure, so that when the saturated steam released by pressure release reaches the surface of the food material, the saturated steam is still at the point of saturated steam and Latent heat is released from the saturated vapor point to the food material to a saturated liquid point, so that the food material is directly heated by the latent heat released by the pressure release saturated steam; and, a water vapor discharge step, when the saturated steam is released from saturation due to the release of latent heat When the vapor point reaches the saturated liquid point, the saturated vapor turns into a water vapor mixture, and the water vapor mixture moves to the water vapor discharge device, and the water vapor discharge device discharges the water vapor mixture from the food material chamber to The new pressure-release saturated vapor can be continuously applied to the food material, so that the food material can continue to be heated by the latent heat released at the point where the saturated vapor point changes to the saturated liquid point. As in the method of claim 6, the release amount of the high-pressure saturated vapor and the discharge amount of the water vapor mixture are controlled so that the ambient temperature of the food ingredient chamber is maintained at a temperature greater than or equal to the constant The pressure of saturated steam. The method of claim 6, wherein the saturated steam generation step further includes heating a first water tank located in the steam chamber, so that the steam chamber contains the saturation with a pressure corresponding to the high pressure High-pressure saturated steam at steam temperature. As in the method of claim 6, the discharge step also includes a heat energy recovery step, by flowing the steam mixture through a second water tank containing water, but not mixed with the water in the second water tank, and The heat energy of the steam mixture discharged is recovered in the water in the second water tank.

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