Methods and apparatus are disclosed for producing irregular slices of meat from meat products. Further, a method of mass-producing a home-style meat product with an irregular appearance includes combining whole muscle meat with a mixture having no phosphates and a limited amount of salt. Further, the whole muscle meat mixture is loosely stuffed into casings such that void space is permitted between the individual whole muscles. Once the whole muscle meat has been cooked and cooled, the meat may be sliced on a variety of slicing equipment to create a home-style meat product with an irregular appearance.

Methods and devices heat or cool viscous materials, such as meat emulsions useful for producing food and other products. The devices have a heat exchanger including a first plate, a second plate attached to the first plate, and a first spacer and a second spacer arranged between the first plate and the second plate. The first plate, the second plate, the first spacer, and the second spacer define at least one temperature controlled passage for a product to pass through the heat exchanger.

Methods and devices heat or cool viscous materials, such as meat emulsions useful for producing food and other products. The devices have a heat exchanger including a first plate, a second plate attached to the first plate, and a first spacer and a second spacer arranged between the first plate and the second plate. The first plate, the second plate, the first spacer, and the second spacer define at least one temperature controlled passage for a product to pass through the heat exchanger.

A bacon analogue or a reconstructed bacon product having a first component with about 42% lean meat, such as a lean pork muscle and about 58% fat and a second component with at least about 85% lean meat, such as a lean pork muscle is provided. The bacon analogue may have a ratio of first to second components of between about 35:65 to about 65:35 and a total fat percentage of about 28% to about 48%. In another configuration, the ratio of first to second components is about 25:75 to about 75:25. In one approach, the bacon analogue is free from alginate binders and free of emulsified meat. In one configuration, the first and the second components are ground to a size of about 0.125-inch to 0.5-inch. After the first and second components are separately mixed and cured, the components are pumped together into a marbled slab having an appearance similar to a pork-belly, which may then be sliced.

A process for manufacturing dry sausage including preparing a dry sausage meat mixture, stuffing the moisture into a casing or mould, or extruding into a mould, fermenting the mixture, hat treating the sausage log, optionally removing the outer casing from the sausage log, cooling tire sausage log to a temperature sufficiently low to permit cutting, cutting the sausage, placing the sausage pieces onto a conveyor, optionally a multi-tier or spiral conveyor assembly, and passing the conveyor and sausage pieces through a chamber. The process also includes introducing a supply of conditioned, air into the chamber, the air having a relative humidity below about 60% and a temperature in the range, of at least about 40° F. to 130° F., and introducing a supply of microwaves into the chamber. The air supply and microwaves are selected to reduce the moisture content of the sausage pieces to a predetermined moisture to protein ratio.

A cooked slice of a meat mass formed of a ground meat mixture and expanded pellets of cellular material provides a crispy, light meat snack product. In some embodiments, the pellets are rendered skin having a low pre-expansion moisture content. A method of making the meat snack product includes making a meat form by adding pellets of cellular material having a moisture content of less than 10% by weight to a ground meat mixture, batch cooking, chilling and slicing the meat form, and cooking the slices of the meat form to expand the pellets of cellular material to result in a crispy meat form slice.

The present disclosure is concerned with chub packaging webs with improved puncture resistance suitable for use in chub packaging. The webs have a double waii partially laminated structure. The structure is conveniently formed by adhesively laminating two component films in a face to face configuration using a pattern of adhesive which leaves a substantial portion of the two facing surfaces unlaminated. Preferably, each of the component films comprise at least one layer of nylon and has a moisture content of greater than 1% by weight such that the double wall partially laminated web has a total energy impact absorption value of greater 0.59 foot-pound at −20° C. measured in accordance with ASTM D-7192 test method.

The present invention relates to a process for the production of a meat analogue, comprising the steps of: a) introducing a meat batter comprising protein into a heating unit and heating the meat batter to a temperature above the melting point of the protein to produce a heat-treated product, wherein the heating unit optionally heats the meat batter by Ohmic heating, b) cooling the heat-treated product by moving through a cooling unit, so that the heat-treated product has a temperature below water boiling temperature at ambient pressure when exiting the cooling unit, and c) dividing the cooled heat-treated product into pieces and optionally d) tearing the pieces by passing the pieces through a roll nip (14) between a pair of counter-rotating cylindrical rolls (2, 4) having parallel axes of rotation (10, 12), a plurality of projections (16) being arranged on an outer surface of at least one of the rolls (2, 4).

The invention provides methods and devices for heating or cooling viscous materials such as meat emulsions useful for producing food and other products. The devices include a heat exchanger comprising a first plate, a second plate attached to the first plate, and a first spacer and a second spacer arranged between the first plate and the second plate. The first plate, the second plate, the first spacer, and the second spacer define at least one temperature controlled passage for a product to pass through the heat exchanger.

The invention provides methods and devices for heating or cooling viscous materials such as meat emulsions useful for producing food and other products. The devices include a heat exchanger comprising a first plate, a second plate attached to the first plate, and a first spacer and a second spacer arranged between the first plate and the second plate. The first plate, the second plate, the first spacer, and the second spacer define at least one temperature controlled passage for a product to pass through the heat exchanger.