Rice Cake Production

Rice ginmills discombobulate only two critical ingredients sieve and water. The sieve itself needs certain characteristics to produce the best quality patty and limit breakage. Sticky sift, whether white or brown, tends to work best, while broad-grain varieties dont lead during cooking as vigorously. Water is important early in preparation. other ingredients like salt (added earlier popping or sprayed on after) and unhomogeneous flavorings argon important considerations to taste-and nutrition-conscious consumers only atomic number 18 not signifi wadt to the employment process.Product ConceptEase of production and marketability ar major concerns when a spic-and-span type of sieve legal profession is considered. The popping machines argon expensive investments, so the product mustiness be readily adaptable to the machine. Production trials occupy picturen that additives greatly profit the likelihood of breakage, so spices, herbs, and seeds are not mixed with the rice to begin with the cake is made although they may be added to the surface later.Similarly, salt and flavorings are now sprayed on earlier methods of adding them to the rice were less than successful in the survival rate of whole rice cakes and in taste. Some manufacturers have also eliminated mini rice cakes from their product line. The novelty of the smaller cakes was to a greater extent costly to produce than sales warranted. A constant stream of new flavor possibilities and other options are under consideration, but only paying attention assurance of a contented public and minimal production difficulties justifies a new product line.The Manufacturing Process1.The simple process of making rice cakes is establish on the fact that rice subjected to the right combination of heat and embrace forget expand to fill a given space.The rice cakes are sprayed and encase.The manufacturers specifically preferred type of raw rice (depending on stickiness, magnification potential, and taste) is soaked in water until the right dampure level is attained.2.The moist rice is fed into hoppers above popping machines. A major manufacturing business of rice cakes may have 80 or 90 machines with virtuoso to three cooking passs, each of which produces one cake every 15 seconds.3.The rice is gravity-fed from the hopper into thecast-iron plaster cast or cooking head in the popping machine. The mold is heated to hundreds of degrees, and a slide home office opens to impose a vacuum on the moist rice mass. aft(prenominal) 8 to 10 seconds of exposure to heat at this pressure, the lid of the mold expands, creating an even greater vacuum on the contents. In the last some seconds of heating, the mixture explodes to fill the given space. If the rice forms a large similarity of the exploded mass, it will be more satisfying, have a kick downstairs texture, and be full of natural flavor. Styrofoam-or hockey puck-like rice cakes show that either too much air and not enough rice is in the mix (styrofoam) or that the moisturedensity relationship is wrong, causing solidity but no flavor (hockey puck). Given the proper chemistry, the bran and other components of the rice bond certificate to each other so the popped mixture sticks together without gumming additives.4.After the cake has exploded in the popping machine, the cooking head opens and the cake locomote gently on a conveyor belt. The belt carries the cake other(prenominal) one or more spraying heads where salt may be added or the cakes are flavor-enhanced. Natural flavors are preferred by consumers and involve everything from strawberry, caramel, apple cinnamon, blueberry, and almond to salsa, nacho, taco, salt-only, or Tamari seaweed. Some rice cake manufacturers will accept orders for private-label flavors.5.The conveyor, now carrying flavored cakes, passes through a tunnel dryer where the moisture added by the flavor sprayers is driven off.6.The conveyor moves to the bagging area, where the ric e cakes are removed from the conveyor by hand, inspected for any breakage, and stacked, sealed in shrinkwrap, and packaged in an overwrap bag printed with the product identification and sealed. The bags are then jam-packed in cartons for bulk sale.Quality ControlQuality control at the rice cake congeal is a labor-intensive process. Any breakage means lost revenue, and upkeep of moisture levels and popping machines are critical. Moisture throughout the process and the pulverisation is monitored constantly. The ambient (naturally occurring) humidity may alter production on a dry day, more moisture may have to be added to the rice. The sinless cakes will absorb moisture, but this is avoided by completing the process from popping machine to bagging in a few minutes.The popping machines themselves are cleaned every few hours. If the molds collectmoisture or rice, the new cake will stick to the mold and cause brittle and break. Because the cakes are apiece hand-sorted prior to baggi ng, damaged rice cakes can be discarded before they reach a bag. Once they are ready for sale, the rice cakes have a remarkably long shelf life of over a year during which they retain taste and texture. If rice cakes have lost their crispness, they can be quickly revived at home by reheating them in a toaster. Even the freshest cakes benefit from a little heat that tends to resort their flavor.Byproducts/WasteThere is essentially no waste in the process of making rice cakes except for breakage. Enterprising producers have created markets for the broken cakes by selling them as cold cereal and ingredients in candy bars as puff up as bags of broken rice cakes for snacking. Flavors that fall out of fashion are removed from the product line and replaced by new flavors that are in development constantly. Chips, crackers, and other snack foods often provide flavor guidelines for rice cake makers.The FutureIncreasing health consciousness bodes well for the future of rice cakes. As the tr eat has become popular as a snack, buyers have become more discriminating in rejecting Styrofoam/hockey puck products for those with better textures and flavors. The sick of designer flavors offers something for every taste, and, of course, the consumer can top the rice cake of extract with fruit, peanut butter, or other enhancements to make an even more varied snack. In an age of energy, health, and time awareness, the 15-second rice cake seems to have harvested its long history.