What Is a Quick Freezing Freezer?
Quick freezing freezers are freezers that preserve food by freezing food rapidly.
Quick freezing refers to a technology that blows cold air below -30°C to freeze food within 30 minutes. It is applied to many foods in the food industry because it can freeze food while locking in flavor.
Among foods, it is suitable for freezing raw meat, seafood, and other foods with a firm tissue structure, and can preserve the quality of the ingredients without damaging them. On the other hand, foods with high water content are unsuitable for freezing because large ice crystals are formed during freezing. While slow freezing degrades food quality, quick freezing freezers can be used to preserve food quality to the maximum extent possible.
Uses of Quick Freezing Freezers
Quick freezing freezers are mainly used in the food industry but are also sold for home use. Specific uses of these freezers are as follows:
- High-end restaurants
- Freezers for home use
- Food processing plants and food storage
- Frozen food for export and import
Quick freezing freezers are used in the food industry and culinary settings because they can store food without compromising quality. In some cases, coloring agents and preservatives are no longer needed.
Principle of Quick Freezing Freezers
A typical quick freezing freezer uses the same principle of freezing food as a household freezer. A refrigerant such as CFC is sealed inside the freezer, and the condensation of the refrigerant removes heat from the system.
However, in the case of quick freezing freezers, a strong blast of air at minus 30 degrees Celsius or lower is created and blown against the food. This lowers the air temperature below a temperature at which ice crystals form all at once, preventing the formation of large ice crystals.
Quick freezing freezers also use liquid nitrogen or other liquefied gas to freeze food. However, this is rarely employed because it requires liquefied gas filling. There is a risk of liquid nitrogen leaking and causing personal injury due to asphyxiation.
Other Information on Quick Freezing Freezers
1. Slow Freezing and Quick Freezing
Storing food in a frozen state is called cold storage. In particular, storing food at temperatures below -15°C is often referred to as freezing. There are two types of freezing: slow freezing and quick freezing.
The most common freezer freezing method is slow freezing. Larger ice crystals form due to the length of time required to go through the temperature range where ice crystals are formed. This destroys the food’s tissue and causes a loss of quality.
Quick freezing freezers, on the other hand, freeze quickly. The time required for ice crystals to pass through the temperature range in which they are formed is made as short as possible, resulting in rapid freezing. This prevents the formation of large ice crystals and maintains the high quality of the food without damaging its freshness or taste.
2. Small Quick Freezing Freezers
Some quick freezing freezers are small and reasonably priced. Most small quick freezing freezers can freeze 2 to 10 kg of food per hour. Uses of these freezers are utilized in restaurant kitchens to freeze and preserve food.
Even a small size can be used for quick freezing, and high freezing capacity can be achieved by improving heat transfer and other measures. Most of them are powered by three-phase 200 V. However, they can be used with single-phase 100 V. Products that can be used with single-phase 100 V are also available and can be selected according to the environment in which they will be installed.