A rotary knife fixture configured for use in a water knife cutting system includes a ring, defining an internal aperture, and at least two spaced, angularly offset, parallel groups of parallel helically twisted cutting blades, extending across the aperture. The ring is configured to be placed in fluid communication with a hydraulic feed conduit of the water knife cutting system and for rotary motion about a rotational axis extending through the aperture. The groups of parallel blades are oriented generally perpendicular to the rotational axis. Each cutting blade has a sharpened cutting edge at one side thereof and is twisted generally about a center point thereof to define a pair of cutting edges oriented in opposite-facing circumferential directions. A vegetable product, fed through the aperture at a product speed, and with the rotary knife fixture rotating at a rotational speed, is substantially simultaneously cut into multiple helically twisted pieces.

A rotary knife fixture for cutting vegetable products into spiral shapes. The knife fixture includes a blade holder driven rotatably within a hydraulic product flow path. The blade holder includes at least one cutting blade, wherein the blade is twisted with a sharpened leading edge set at a desired pitch angle. By controlling the pitch angle of the blade in relation to the blade rotational speed and velocity at which the potato travels along the hydraulic flow path, the resultant spiral cut shape is selected. By using multiple cutting blades at known axially spaced positions and selecting the angular position of each cutting blade in succession, the number of spiral shapes cut from each potato is selected. The blades can have a nontextured straight-cut edge, or a textured crinkle-cut edge, or a combination.

In one example, a rotary cutting device includes a helical cutting blade rotatable against a workpiece to cut the workpiece and translatable to engage the workpiece and to disengage the workpiece.

A mechanical cutting device cuts twisted strips of foods such as potatoes. The device comprises twisted cutting tubes, each having a ring secured at a distance from the cutting end. A plurality of such tubes may be arranged in an array, which may be supported by plates having an array of tube-supporting orifices. The cutting tubes are supported for rotation in such manner that, when force is exerted on the tubes to insert the tubes into the food, the tubes rotate as they cut into the food obtaining as result twisted strips of food.

A system and method for manufacturing and processing a food product, such as forming, cooking, transporting, and slicing. The food product includes an elongated body having a generally D-shaped cross section. Additionally, the system includes a buffering and equilibrating apparatus which compensates for a difference in cycle times between the cooking system and the slicing system.

A flow-propelled rotary knife system includes a housing, having an outlet end and walls defining a fluid passage, a rotatable blade holder, disposed at the outlet end and having a central aperture substantially aligned with the fluid passage, and at least one blade, extending diametrically across the central aperture of the blade holder. The blade holder is configured to rotate about a rotational axis passing through the central aperture, and the at least one blade has a twisted shape selected to rotationally propel the blade and the blade holder to rotate about the rotational axis when the blade is contacted by fluid flowing through the fluid passage and the central aperture in a flow direction, whereby objects propelled along the fluid flow path in the flow direction toward the outlet are helically cut by the rotating blade.

A food processing apparatus for the cutting of foodstuff comprising a first cutter having a cross/sectional shape defining a first maximal external diameter and a first minimal internal diameter about a first central axis. A second cutter having a cross-sectional shape defining a second maximal external diameter and a second minimal internal diameter about a second central axis is also provided. The second maximal external diameter of the second cutter is greater than or equal to the first minimal internal diameter of the first cutter. In use, the foodstuff is cut by the second cutter before being cut by the first cutter, or alternatively the first cutter may make the first cut with the second cutter making a second subsequent cut.

Existing blade assemblies for cutting complex three-dimensional shapes such as twisted shapes are typically slow and suffer from frequent breakdowns. Disclosed herein is a stationary blade assembly for cutting food products into complex shapes as the food products are directed along a direction of flow at the blade assembly, wherein the blade assembly comprises a plurality of blades, each of the plurality of blades having a length, wherein the length of the blade is oriented along the direction of flow and the blade is twisted along its length, whereby the food products are rotated by the blade during cutting.