Processing Technology of dried Apricot Juice

Apricot is one of the ancient cultivated tree species in China, which is widely distributed. Apricot fruit is rich in vitamins and minerals. It contains 10g sugar, 0.9g protein, 1.79g carotene, 0.02 mg thiamine, riboflavin 0.03mg, nicotinic acid 0.6mg and vitamin C7 mg per 100g pulp. Almonds contain about 23% protein, 50% fat and 60% fat, with an oil yield of 45.8%, and are rich in nutrients such as phosphorus, calcium, potassium and iron needed by the human body. Almond is an excellent tonic and an important raw material for the food industry. Apricot fruit is processed into almond, preserved apricot, dried apricot and other food, which is very popular in domestic and foreign markets, and the economic benefit is very high.

1 processing of almonds

1.1 technological process

Kernel apricot → peeling → sunburn nucleus → smashing kernel → pick kernel → finished product.

1.2 main points of processing

1.2.1 for apricot fruits with both peeled kernels and apricots reserved for pulp, apricot kernels should be carefully pinched after harvest to retain complete apricot peels. Only take the apricot kernel with apricot, after drying, take the core by rolling and beating with a stick, and then separate the core meat by winnowing and artificial picking.

1.2.2 there is still a lot of moisture after the apricot kernel is peeled, so it must be dried. When drying the nucleus, you should put the apricot kernel in a sunny place and turn it intermittently for 5 to 6 days until the core and shell is dry. when you shake the almond, you can put it away and smash the core to remove the kernel. If the apricot kernel is not dry, it is not easy to preserve and take kernels, so drying almond kernels plays an important role in improving the quality of almonds.

1.2.3 there are two methods of smashing the core by hand and pressing the core by machine. At present, the machine core pressing method is often used to make almonds, that is, the kernels are extracted by a special core crusher, including a manual core crusher and an electric sheller. The enucleation capacity of the manual nuclear press used in production is 200kg/ days, and the enucleation capacity of the electric sheller is 2000kg/ days. The better sheller is the 500 sheller made by Bayi Agricultural College, which can process apricot kernel 4000kg/ days, and the kernel breaking rate is only 7%.

1.1.4 after the kernels are smashed with apricots, the nucleolus and the core and shell are mixed together. You can use a windmill or dustpan to screen out part of the core and shell, and then pick out the almonds. When picking kernels, pick out the damaged grains, bad kernels and impurities.

1.1.5 finished almonds are finished after drying. After packaging, it should be stored in a sterilized warehouse, be careful not to store with other items such as spices, gasoline, alcohol and other odorous or corrosive items.

1.3 quality of finished products

The quality of almond products includes two aspects: quality identification and moisture test.

1.3.1 quality identification is the test of the shape, color and smell of almonds. At present, it mainly depends on the comprehensive evaluation by means of seeing, touching, sniffing, taste and so on. The shape of almonds is full and uniform in size, and the color is yellowish brown, uniform in depth and glossy. Almonds have inherent fragrance and can not have other peculiar smells, such as mildew, wine, agricultural medicine and so on.

1.3.2 moisture content is one of the main indexes to identify the quality of almonds. Moisture test can be measured with a moisture tester, or you can put your hand into a sack containing almonds. If it feels slippery, it is easy to insert, indicating that almonds are dry; if astringent, it is not easy to insert, it means that almonds have a high moisture content.

2 processing of dried apricot

2.1 technological process

Fresh apricot → cleaning → enucleation → fumigation → drying → finished product.

2.2 Technical points

2.2.1 Clean fresh apricots that meet the requirements, rinse with clean water and drain.

2.2.2 the enucleated fresh apricot is drained and cut with a stainless steel knife along the suture line of the pulp. Remove the apricot core, rinse the pulp with clean water and put it into the basket.

2.2.3 the smoked sulfur will send the material basket or bamboo curtain containing apricot slices into the smokehouse, put it on the wooden rack, pour the burning charcoal into the iron plate in the center of the house, quickly sprinkle sulfur (1000kg apricot slices with 4kg sulfur) on the charcoal, then leave the smokehouse, then close the doors and windows tightly, smoke for about 2 hours, and then open the doors and windows for ventilation when the fruit slices are yellow and translucent. When the air is fully exchanged, move the apricot slices outside to dry 1h~2h, and then dry.

3.2.4 dried apricot slices, which have been fumigated, are sent to the baking room and placed layer by layer on the wooden rack, then the doors and windows are closed and the fire is heated for drying. At the beginning of 4h~6h, the room temperature was kept at 40 ℃ ~ 50 ℃, and then gradually increased to 70 ℃ ~ 80 ℃. With the evaporation of moisture in apricot slices and the increase of indoor humidity, doors, windows and vents should be opened in time to remove water vapor, and the closing time should be controlled according to indoor dry humidity and drying degree of apricot slices. In the drying process, the apricot slices on the upper and lower layers of the grill should be replaced so that they are heated evenly and strive for the same batch of raw materials to be dried at the same time. The drying time is generally 24h~36h, if the temperature and humidity are not properly mastered, it will prolong the drying time, and the color of such products is poor and the quality is poor.

2.2.5 the finished product will soften the dried apricot, then pick out the fragments and sundries, grade them, and pack them in wooden cases or cartons according to grade. Packing film or wrapping paper should be lined in the box before packing to prevent dried apricots from getting wet. After entering the box, dried apricots should be stored at a temperature of 0 ℃ ~ 5 ℃ and a relative humidity of about 65%, so as to avoid storage in places of direct sunlight.

2.3 quality of finished products

The quality requirement of dried apricot is orange, soft, non-sticky, translucent, uniform in size, neat in shape, strong sweet and sour flavor, and the water content is not more than 18%.

3 processing of apricot juice

3.1 technological process

Selective → cleaning → crushing → pre-cooking → pressing → coarse filtration → clarification → fine filtration → homogenization → deoxidization → adjustment sugar acidity → canned → sterilization → product.

3.2 main points of processing

3.2.1 the apricot fruit prepared by selecting materials and cleaning apricot juice should have good flavor, slightly higher acidity, easy juice extraction, more juice, orange-yellow pulp, fully ripe, insect-free and injury-free. Before processing, wash the apricot fruit with clean water, cut it in half and enucleate.

3.2.2 it is best to cut the apricot meat into small pieces of 3mm~4mm, not too shredded, for pre-cooking. Pre-cook 15min~30min with the same amount of chopped pulp and water in a stainless steel pot and control the temperature at 60 ℃ ~ 70 ℃ to soften the pulp fully and add a little vitamin C, citric acid or a small amount of salt to protect the color.

3.2.3 Apricot meat after crushing and rough filtration should be pressed by a press immediately. After the first pressing, the fruit residue is added a small amount of water, soaked for several hours and then pressed; the extracted apricot juice is filtered out with a filter net or filter bag to filter out the suspended matter and impurities.

3.2.4 clarification and fine filtration only remove large impurities and suspended solids, while clarification and fine filtration mainly remove the colloid in apricot juice to make apricot juice clear and transparent.

3.2.5 the homogenized, deoxygenated and turbid apricot juice should be homogenized so that the particles in the juice are more small and uniform, and the apricot juice passes through the 0.002mm~0.003mm homogenized pore under high pressure. Deoxidization is the removal of oxygen from apricot juice. Antioxidants can be used, that is, a small amount of vitamin C and other antioxidants are added when apricot juice is canned.

3.2.6 to adjust the sugar acidity of apricot juice, the sugar content and acid content of apricot juice should have a proper proportion of flavor. Generally, the ratio of sugar to acid is 13: 15 ∶ 1, and the sugar content is about 17%. The method of adjustment is to adjust the sugar content with the filtered concentrated sugar solution and adjust its acidity with 0.1% citric acid.

3.2.7 heat apricot juice to 80 ℃ ~ 90 ℃ by canning and sterilization, then seal immediately while hot. Sterilize with boiling water at high temperature. after entering the pot, the water temperature of 3min~5min rises to 100 ℃, keeping 10min about. After sterilization, the iron can is quickly cooled in cold water, and the drink in glass bottle can be cooled by stages, wiping off the water droplets and smearing antirust oil, that is, the finished product.

3.3 quality of finished products

The processed apricot juice is dark yellow or orange in color, contains 15%-20% soluble solids, 0.5%-1% acid, and has a strong apricot flavor.