(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to encapsulated foods filled with a desired edible liquid and the process for preparing drinks which include such encapsulated foods. Furthermore, this invention relates to a process for preparing encapsulated foods to make, encapsulated dressings, encapsulated alcohol drinks, encapsulated coffee or red tea etc. by using dressings, fruit juice, alcoholic drinks and other liquids, popular foods, liquid sweetening materials, etc. as edible liquids and the process for preparing drinks which include these encapsulated foods.
Generally, popular foods such as alcohol, coffee, red tea, cocoa, etc. as well as fruit juice are used as drinks because of their liquid form. Moreover, acidic condiments, i.e. dressings and condiment vinegar etc., being normally liquid, are poured over a salad, for example, by using a spoon. However, the poured condiments either permeate into the salad itself or are dispersed and absorbed into any food surrounding it. Therefore, it is impossible to visually confirm the quantity that has been used or to know for certain how much of it enhanced the flavor of the salad. Although powdered condiments and granular ones may resolve these problem to a certain extent, the use of powdered ones is somewhat restricted due to their quality or taste.
The present invention intends to resolve these problem. More specifically, it provides a new process for preparing edible dressings, edible alcoholic drinks, edible coffee or tea, etc. which have the taste and quality of liquid dressings, fruit juices, alcoholic drinks, popular liquid foods, liquid sweetening materials, etc., and besides have more visual character and are not too soft.
(2) Description of Prior Preparation
Previously, a process for preparing capsules using solutions of alginic acid salt and calcium salt is conducted by dropping solutions of alginic acid salt and calcium into another solution to form a membrane of calcium alginate, thereby forming the capsule. However, it is impossible to obtain suitable capsules when this process is applied as it is to dressings, alcoholic drinks or to any preferred drinks.
For example, when an acidic condiment per se is subjected to encapsulation, the equilibrium of the alginic acid ion and sodium ion is lost by the acidifying the sodium alginate solution to agglomerate and generate alginic acid separately. Also, the calcium ions for forming the membrane are fewer because they react with acid so as to extract calcium salt by acidifying the calcium salt solution; therefore, in any way, it is difficult to produce good capsules.
It may be considered that the process is to first form the capsules and then fill them with an acidic condiment liquid. However, in this case, the capsules consisting of calcium alginate are influenced by the acid due to a time lapse, thus causing various problems to arise such as how to produce capsules with strong membranes which will neither collapse nor change in quality under preservation when filling them with the acidic condiment liquid and how to fill the acidic condiment liquid into the inner spaces of the capsules already formed.
When fruit juice per se is encapsulated as a core material, various problems arise such as that fruit juice reacts with alginic acid to increase its viscosity and alginic acid generates and agglomerates separately since fruit juice is normally an organic acid liquid of pH 3-4. Furthermore, it becomes difficult to conduct a strong bridge reaction in view of the competing COOH group of alginic acid molecules and the COOH group of fruit juice molecules because fruit juice reacts with calcium salt to decrease the number of calcium ions and further generates alginic acid calcium, producing an inferior taste so that, being not edible, this causes a problem that is difficult to solve.
Concerning alcoholic drinks to be encapsulated as core material, here also various problems arise making it difficult to form the desired capsules despite the addition of products such as xanthene gum, etc.; besides, drops of alcoholic drinks collapse on the surface of alginic acid salt liquid when they are dropped into it. The reason for such a phenomena is due to the fact that alcoholic drinks per se are low in molecular compounds and have a low viscosity. In any case, there is also the problem of solving the difficulties in forming capsules by such a reaction.
The same problem exists in the case of other liquids and liquid sweeters. Namely, when these substances are encapsulated as core material those in which the mixture of alginic acid salt with liquids or liquid sweetening material is dropped into calcium salt water solution may be encapsulated well; however, this manner of preparation is not desirable for taste because the resulting capsules become hard. Furthermore, when the mixture of calcium salt water solution and liquid sweetening material is dropped into an alginic acid water solution, an unsuitable taste is generated by the remaining calcium constituent in the sweet materials. In any case, it is difficult to prepare suitable capsules. Such problems also occur with encapsulated foods including cut solid foods containing the core liquid.