TECHNICAL FIELD
The present subject matter is related, in general to a food product, and more
particularly, but not exclusively to a method for producing an crispy/crunchy extruded,
sheeted or any food product.
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BACKGROUND
Extruded filled snack products having a crisp outer dough shell may be preferred by
many consumers. The extruded filled snack with a crisp outer dough shell may be produced by addition of excess water and a dehydration process. The crisp outer dough associated with
10 extruded filled snack may also be sweet in comparison with the central filling. However, sweetness in the crisp outer filling may interfere with the taste of a sweet or savory product or may not compliment the overall product.
In the past, semi-sweet or less sweet ingredients such as corn syrup, maltodextrin may have been used to produce savory food products without use of oven or similar post extrusion
15 thermal processes. However, use of semi-sweet or less sweet ingredients such as corn syrup, maltodextrin may affect the texture and eating experience. Use of other sweet and semi-sweet syrups and maltodextrin etc. may result in undesirable product texture and reduce hardness and crunchiness as achieved by post-extrusion drying (such as baking).
20 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS
Figure. 1 illustrates a flow chart for method for producing an expanded food product.
Figure.2 (a) illustrates an exemplary embodiment of an expanded food product.
25 Figure.2 (b) illustrates a cross section of an expanded food product.
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It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that any diagrams herein represent conceptual views of illustrative systems embodying the principles of the present subject matter.
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SUMMARY
A method for producing low moisture expanded/sheeted/any other form of food product, the method comprising steps of: plasticizing, a farinaceous food mixture using a
10 plasticizer to obtain a plasticized mixture; wherein the plasticized mixture comprises of 10 % to 35% of lactose, sugar, dextrose monohydrate, glucose or any form of sugar; extruding the plasticized mixture to obtain a crispy/crunchy food product; wherein the said product contains a moisture content from 0.8 % to 6.0 % and water activity from 0.2 to 0.6, gives shelf life of 5 years; and Forming: the crispy/crunchy product into a extruded, sheeted or
15 anyfood product to produce low moisture food product.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
In the present document, the word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an 20 example, instance, or illustration." Any embodiment or implementation of the present subject matter described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments.
While the disclosure is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms,
25 specific embodiment thereof has been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be
described in detail below. It should be understood, however that it is not intended to limit the
disclosure to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the disclosure is to cover all

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modifications, equivalents, and alternative falling within the spirit and the scope of the disclosure.
The terms "comprises", "comprising", or any other variations thereof, are intended to 5 cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a setup, device or method that comprises a list of components or steps does not include only those components or steps but may include other components or steps not expressly listed or inherent to such setup or device or method. In other words, one or more elements in a system or apparatus proceeded by "comprises... a" does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of other elements or additional 10 elements in the system or method.
In the following detailed description of the embodiments of the disclosure, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which are shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the disclosure may be practiced. These 15 embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the disclosure, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The following description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense.
20 The present invention relates to a method for producing low moisture crispy/crunchy,
direct expanded center filled ready-to-eat food products, which includes product with a moisture content of between about 0.8 % to about 6.0 % and low water activity ranging from of 0.2 to 0.6, which gives the shelf life of 5 years and it will be sent through dryer, seasoning/coating applicator or directly for packaging and subsequent consumption of
25 thefood product with a desirable texture and a formulation thereof.
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The present invention provides a method for producing low moisture crispy/crunchy extruded, sheeted or any other form of food product by using low moisture plasticizer mix made of lactose, sugar, dextrose monohydrate, glucose or any form of sugar. The present 5 invention provides the food product without the use of sweet sugar or partial replacement of sweet sugar such as sucrose, glucose, fructose etc. which is otherwise achieved typically using sugar.
The present invention incorporates lactose, sugar and dextrose monohydrate,glucose 10 or any form of sugar as a plasticizer mixing the dough which delivers low moisture in after extrusion.
Figure 1 illustrates a flow chart of a method for producing an expanded food product.
15 At step 102, a farinaceous food mixture may be plasticized using a plasticizer to obtain
a plasticized mixture. The plasticized mixture may comprise of 10 % to 35 % of lactose, sugar, dextrose monohydrate, glucose or any other form of sugar. The farinaceous food mixture may be a material such as flour, starch, wheat, rice, rye, potatoes, barley, oats, tapioca, other cereals, seeds, legumes tubers or multi grain flours. The farinaceous food
20 mixture may be dishes made from pasta, noodles, rice, polenta or gnocchi. The farinaceous food mixture may comprise dietary fiber, starchy flours, cereals, pulses, starchy vegetables.
In the present invention, lactose may be used as a plasticizer for the reason that lactose is obtained from milk and is less sweet as compared to other sugars. Therefore, 25 lactose may not interfere with, materials that are of sweet or savory taste.
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In an embodiment of the present invention, the_ farinaceous food mixture may be extrudable/sheetable dough. The extrudable dough may incorporate and utilize lactose, sugar, dextrose monohydrate, glucose or any other form of sugar as a plasticizer mix to facilitate the 5 formation of food product. In the embodiment, using the extrudable dough, which incorporates and utilizes a particular sugar called lactose, sugar, dextrose monohydrate, glucose or any form of sugar as a plasticizer mix in place of previously used sugar or by partially replacing them facilitate the extrusion/sheeting and achieve the desired texture with low moisture after extrusion. Lactose provides the desired degree of plasticity and flowability
10 in the mixture with considerably less amount of water present than would otherwise be required. Lactose along with the moisture which is normally present in the farinaceous materials is sufficient, when the plasticizer is present to allow for efficient extrusion/sheeting and puffing of the mixture. The necessity of adding water to the mixture and more importantly, the necessity for subsequent removal of the added water in a drying apparatus is
15 thereby avoided by maintaining overall blended raw material moisture ranging from 5% to 12% through use of plasticizer mix (lactose moisture is 0.5% max, sugar moisture is 0.1%, dextrose monohydrate moisture is 7.5% and glucose powder moisture is 5%)
At step 104, the plasticized mixture may be extruded/sheeted to obtain a crispy/crunchy
20 product having moisture content from 0.8 % to 6.0 % and water activity from 0.2 to 0.6. The
farinaceous food mixture with lactose is fed into an extruder/sheeter using a volumetric or
gravimetric feeder. In the practice of the present invention, several high shear extruder types
may be used.
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In an embodiment, a twin-screw extruder with thermo-mechanical energy may be
used to_extrude-the-plasticized mixture. A conventional extruder nozzle assembly generally
comprises an outer extrusion conduit having an inlet for receiving dough and an outlet for
discharging the filling material inside, as enrobed by the tubular shaped extrudate and may be
5 further processed into the crispy/crunchy product.
Step 104 further comprises introducing a filling material into the crispy/crunchy product. In an embodiment of the present invention, a sweet or savory filling material may or may not be introduced into the center of the plasticized mixture, such that the crispy/crunchy
10 products so formed with coating/seasoning are core-filled or empty or sheeted and shelf-stable.The introduction of the sweet or savory filling material into the crispy/crunchy products may be performed by, without limitation, an annular co-axial tube for co-extrusion/ sheeted product. However, care may be taken to ensure that the maximum temperature of the filling is about 25°C to about 60 °C to prevent undesirable burning of the filling material. The
15 filled material comprises Multigrain meals and wherein said filling material comprises one or more flavoring powders.
In an embodiment of the present invention post extrusion at step 104, the extrudable dough which incorporated lactose, sugar, dextrose monohydrate, glucose or any other form of 20 sugarmay contain moisture of 0.8% to 6.0% to form the low moisture crisp snack food product. The extrudable dough may comprise of the plasticizer mix from 10 % to35 %; wherein the water activity may be 0.2 to 0.6 and moisture is 0.8 % to 6.0 %, and total sugar content may be around 3% to 15 %.
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In an embodiment of the present invention, the crisp product may comprise a crispy/crunchy expanded or sheeted farinaceous outer shell comprising a material which is produced by the process of the present invention and an inner filling material. The inner sweet/savory filling material is disposed or not disposed within the center of the outer shell. 5
At Step 106, after the extrusion, the low moisture crispy/crunchy product may be subjected to further processing such as forming or cutting or shaping by any other means known in the art to produce a plurality of smaller (bite-sized) snack food products. "Forming" may include shaping or cutting steps or both which can be performed simultaneously or one
10 after other sequentially. A pillow shape or any other desired shape may be made almost immediately thereafter, such as at some subsequent small distance following the exit from the die face, before the product cools, by pinch cutter with a product moisture content between 0.8 % to 6.0 %. Ashaped extruded/sheeted that can be cut into a ready-to-eat snack food product, which sets shape upon cooling. The crispy/crunchy product may immediately be sent
15 for optional dryer and seasoning steps before packaging to produce the expanded/sheeted food product.
Figures 2a & 2b illustrate an exemplary embodiment of the expanded/sheeted food product.
Figure 2a illustrates the expanded food product 202. The expanded/sheeted food product 202 20 may comprise of a farinaceous food material and lactose having moisture content from 0.8 to
6.0% and a water activity of about 0.2 to 0.6. The expanded food product 202 may be crispy/
crunchy due to the presence of plasticizer and the low moisture content from 0.8 weight % to
6.0 weight %.
Figure 2a illustrates a cross section of the expanded food product 202. The expanded food 25 product may further comprise of a crispy/crunchy outer shell/sheet 204 and an inner filling
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material. The inner filling material may or may not be disposed within the center of the outer shell 204. The inner filling material may be of sweet or savory taste.
EXAMPLE
The following example is used to illustrate the invention but is not intended to limit the
invention in any way.
A savory direct expanded product was prepared from the components of Table 1:
Table 1: Outer shell formulation

Table : 1
Outer Shell Formulation
Components %
Multi-Grain Flours 60-75
Plasticizer Mix 10-35
Salt and Emulsifier 0.5-5
Farinaceous material and lactose were thoroughly blended as described above and fed to an extruder using a co-rotating twin auger feeder, similar to a meal feeder. The blend was then extruded through a twin screw long barrel extruder with a 16.7 inch screw and a barrel set up with an L/D ratio of 4. The screw speed was set to about 250rpm and external heat was 15 applied to the extruder to maintain a temperature at the die of about 125 to 135°C during extrusion. The premix was extruded at a rate of 150 to 200Kg/hour with a 6 inch threaded barrel.

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The extrudate is discharged through a die plate having a generally annular opening. As the extrudate emerges from the die plate, a small tube is inserted through the sweet or savory filling material into the center of the extruding tubularshape (or rope-like) dough and post-barrels, and is attached at the die exit, provided for the shaping of the tubular dough. 5
The food product sets into shape upon cooling thereafter. The finished product comprises a texture that is low moisture, crispy and crunchy.
Advantages of the embodiment of the present disclosure are illustrated herein. 10 Embodiments of the present invention disclose that presence of sugar eliminates the need to
add the water into the farinaceous mixture allowing to achieve low moisture in
expanded/sheeted food product.
Embodiments of the present invention disclose method should produce shelf-stable food
products having desirable low moisture, crispy/crunchy texture while maintaining a low 15 water activity. Embodiments of the present invention disclose method should further allow
for the production of sweet/savory expanded or sheeted food products with a desirable sweet
or savory taste, low water activity and crunchy texture.
Embodiments of the present invention disclose a method of producing sweet or savory
center-filled/shape snack products with or without fillings that enhance or compliment the 20 taste, texture and overall eating experience of sweet or savory extruded food products.
Embodiments of the present invention disclose a low raw material cost of plasticizer mix
(Lactose, sugar,dextrose monohydrate, glucose or any form of sugar) which cost in the range
of Rs. 70 to 85 per kg. Therefore, the present invention has economic significance as well as
technical advance as compared to the existing knowledge.
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We claim:
1. A method for producing low moisture food product, the method comprising steps of:
Plasticizing (Step 102) a farinaceous food mixture using a plasticizer to obtain a
plasticized mixture; wherein the plasticized mixture comprises of 10 % to 35 % of
5 lactose, sugar, dextrose monohydrate,glucose or any other form of sugar;
extruding (Step 104) the plasticized mixture to obtain a crisp product; wherein the
crispy/crunchy product contains a moisture content from 0.8 % to 6.0 %, water
activity from 0.2 to 0.6, and gives shelf life of ideally up to a period of 5 years; and
Forming (Step 106) the crispy/crunchy product into a snack or food product through
10 an extruder/sheeter to produce low moisture food product.
2. The method as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the plasticizer should not further
interferewith materials that are of sweet or savoury taste.
15 3. The method as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the plasticizer is lactose, sugar and
dextrose monohydrate, glucose or any form of sugar, in isolation or in combinationand provides the desired degree of plasticity and flowability in the mixture with considerably less amount of water present than would otherwise be required.
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4. The method as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the farinaceous food mixture comprises of at least one of flour, starch, wheat, rice, rye, potatoes, barley, oats, tapioca other cereals, seeds, legumes tubers multi grain flours, dietary fiber, starchy flours, cereals, pulses, starchy vegetables or any combination thereof.
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5. The method as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the farinaceous food mixture comprises
of an extrudable dough, wherein the extrudable or sheetable dough incorporates and
utilizes lactose, sugar, dextrose monohydrate, glucose or any form of sugar as a
plasticizer mix to facilitate the extrusion and to achieve the desired texture with low
30 moisture after extrusion or sheeting.
6. The method as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the step of extruding/sheeting (Step 104)
the plasticized mixture to obtain a crispy/crunchy product, further comprises
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introducing a filling material into the crispy/crunchy product, wherein the filling materialis at least one of sweet or savory, without filling or a combination of both; wherein the crispy/crunchy product so formed, is core-filled, shaped and shelf-stable.
7. The method as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the introduction of the sweet or savoury filling material into the crispy/crunchy products is performed by an annular co-axial tube for co-extrusion/sheeting.
8. The method as claimed in Claim 1 wherein, "Forming" includes shaping or cutting steps or both which can be performed simultaneously or one after other sequentially.
9. An low moisture food product 202, wherein the expanded food product comprises of a farinaceous food material and lactose having moisture content from 0.8 to 6.0% and a water activity of about 0.2 to 0.6.
10. The low moisture food product as claimed in Claim 9,wherein the expanded or sheeted food product 202 is crispy or crunchy due to the presence of plasticizer and the low moisture content from 0.8 to 6.0% ^ ^