Rice Cake Production

Rice taprooms have only two critical ingredients sift and water. The strain itself needs certain characteristics to produce the best quality bar and posit breakage. Sticky strain, whether white or brown, tends to work best, while long-grain varieties dont expand during grooming as vigorously. Water is important early in preparation. Other ingredients resembling salt (added before popping or sprayed on after) and various livelinessings argon important considerations to taste-and nutrition-conscious consumers but are not significant to the employment process.Product ConceptEase of production and marketability are major concerns when a fresh type of sieve streak is considered. The popping instruments are expensive investments, so the product must be readily adaptable to the machine. Production trials have shown that additives greatly increase the likelihood of breakage, so spices, herbs, and seeds are not mixed with the rice before the cake is made although they may be added to the surface later.Similarly, salt and flavorings are today sprayed on earlier methods of adding them to the rice were less than successful in the natural selection rate of whole rice cakes and in taste. Some manufacturers have in addition eliminated mini rice cakes from their product line. The novelty of the smaller cakes was much pricy to produce than sales warranted. A constant stream of new flavor possibilities and other options are under consideration, but only careful arrogance of a contented public and minimal production difficulties justifies a new product line.The Manufacturing Process1.The simple process of making rice cakes is based on the fact that rice subjected to the right combination of heat and pressure impart expand to fill a given space.The rice cakes are sprayed and packaged.The manufacturers specifically preferred type of raw rice (depending on stickiness, expansion potential, and taste) is ladened in water until the right moisture level is attained.2 .The moist rice is fed into hoppers above popping machines. A major producer of rice cakes may have 80 or 90 machines with hotshot to cardinal cooking heads, distributively of which produces one cake every 15 seconds.3.The rice is gravity-fed from the hopper into thecast-iron mold or cooking head in the popping machine. The mold is heated to hundreds of degrees, and a slide plate opens to trim back a vacuum on the moist rice mass. After 8 to 10 seconds of exposure to heat at this pressure, the lid of the mold expands, creating an rase greater vacuum on the contents. In the last few seconds of heating, the multifariousness explodes to fill the given space. If the rice forms a large proportion of the set off mass, it result be more satisfying, have a better 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 solidi ty but no flavor (hockey puck). Given the proper chemistry, the bran and other components of the rice bond to each other so the popped mixture sticks together without gumming additives.4.After the cake has detonate in the popping machine, the cooking head opens and the cake falls light on a conveyor belt. The belt carries the cake past one or more spraying heads where salt may be added or the cakes are flavor-enhanced. Natural flavors are preferred by consumers and include everything from strawberry, caramel, orchard apple tree cinnamon, blueberry, and almond to salsa, nacho, taco, salt-only, or Tamari seaweed. Some rice cake manufacturers volition include orders for private-label flavors.5.The conveyor, now carrying flavored cakes, passes through a tunnel juicelesser where the moisture added by the flavor sprayers is driven off.6.The conveyor moves to the bagging area, where the rice cakes are remove from the conveyor by hand, inspected for any breakage, and stacked, sealed i n shrinkwrap, and packaged in an overwrap bag printed with the product identification and sealed. The bags are then packed in cartons for bulk sale.Quality ControlQuality control at the rice cake plant is a labor-intensive process. Any breakage means lost revenue, and maintenance of moisture levels and popping machines are critical. Moisture throughout the process and the factory 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 finished 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 become brittle and break. Because the cakes are individually hand-sorted preliminary to bagging, damaged rice cakes can be discarded before they polish off a bag. Once they are ready for sale, the rice cakes have a remarkably long shelf life of over a stratum 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 restore their flavor.Byproducts/WasteThere is basically no waste in the process of making rice cakes nevertheless for breakage. Enterprising producers have created markets for the broken cakes by selling them as wintry cereal and ingredients in candy bars as well as bags of broken rice cakes for snacking. Flavors that fall out of fashion are withdraw from the product line and replaced by new flavors that are in breeding 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 daintiness 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 range of graphic designer flavors offers something for every taste, and, of course, the consumer can top the rice cake of choice with fruit, undistinguished 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.