download article

Cereal

Cereal is a grain product that is especially popular as a breakfast product. It is eaten together with milk or yogurt. There are two kinds of cereal. The first is cooked cereal, which has to be cooked (with milk) and is eaten as hot cereals. Secondly, there is instant cereal, which is most popular and can be eaten as cold cereals.

Production of instant cereals

Ingredients

The types of grain that are used are corn, wheat, oats, rice and barley. The other ingredients that are added are salt, vitamins, minerals, preservatives, flavor, color and sweetener. The vitamins and minerals are added to compensate the loss of these components during the cooking process. This applies especially to vitamin B1 of which 90% is lost during the process. The preservatives that are added are antioxidants. These avoid a tough and rancid taste. The sweeteners can be malt, white or brown sugar, corn syrup and or concentrated fruit juice. Chocolate, cinnamon, dried fruits and nuts can be added as flavor.

Checking and cleaning

When the grain arrives it is checked and the unwanted grain is removed. The cleaning of the grain happens in the same way as the cleaning of grain in the production process of bread (see ‘bread’ in the left menu).

Crushing

The grain is delicately crushed. The goal of this phase is to remove the outer layer of the grain. This outer layer hinders the insertion of moisture into the grain which leaves the grain hard.

Boiling

Subsequently, the grain is boiled in a rotating vacuum boiler. The goal of the boiling process is to soften the grain and to kill the microorganisms. Water is added to the grain at the beginning of the process. The grain is boiled under vacuum to limit the damage. The point of boiling is lowered so that a less high temperature is necessary to obtain the same result. Vitamins, minerals, flavor and sweeteners are added at the end of the cooking process. Ingredients that are not to become wet (like dried fruit) are added in a later phase. They are mixed in just before packing the grains.
The tuning of the time, temperature and the rotating speed of the boiling process are dependent on the type of grain.

Drying

After boiling the grain it is dried. It is not dried completely. It contains a certain amount of moisture so that it can be shaped.

Several kinds of cereals can be made from the grain. The four types of cereals are mentioned below. Later, the differently treated grain can be mixed as to produce a mixture.

Flakes

To get the shape of flakes the grain is given several hours to soften causing the moisture content to be the same everywhere and the grain to cool down. Afterwards the grain is crushed between two rollers. These rollers have a rather flat surface. The grain is pushed through the two rollers. After that the flat grain is roasted. Very hot air is blown through the grain until it has the desired color and moisture content. Roasting also influences the taste.

Popping

Popped rice can be produced in two ways.

Rice can be popped in an oven. With this method the grain rises, but does not really pop. The rice is first boiled, cooled down and dried. Afterwards, the rice is crushed between two rollers. When the rice is put in an oven afterwards it swells.

Rice can also be popped in a pressure cooker. All types of grain can be popped in this cooker. Although rice does not need any pretreatment, the outer layer of the other types of grain has to be removed in part first. This can be done by grinding it between rollers or by steeping it in salt water. After a possible pretreatment the grain is put in a tank. Extremely hot steam (overheated steam) is brought in. This highly increases the pressure in the tank. When the pressure is high enough it is suddenly released. At that moment, the pressure in the grain is still high. Because of the internal overpressure the grain pops.

Grinding

Ground cereals are obtained by simply crushing them. The grain is softened as a pretreatment. It is given a break for several hours by which the moisture content stabilizes and the grain can cool down. Afterwards, the grain is crushed between two rollers. One of the rollers has a flat surface while the other has furrows. The grain is scraped of the roller by means of scrapers with the same furrows as the roller. The grain sticks together and can be cut into the desired size.

Shaping

Cereals can be shaped, for example in the shape of animals or letters. The rather wet cereals are pushed through a tube. A shape is put at the end of the tube. The result is a string of grain in the shape of a figure. This string can be cut into slices resulting in little shaped pieces of cereals. These shapes are partially popped so that a light product is created that keeps its shape.

Mixing

The above mentioned types of cereals can be processed and packed both separately and in mixes. The desired types of cereals are mixed in certain compositions. During this phase ingredients can be added like dried fruit, but these can also be added after coating and drying.

Coating

In coating the cereals are put in a rotating drum. A hot and thick layer of syrup is sprayed on the grain.

Drying

After coating the grain is dried. This happens by means of air that is blown through the grain. This cools down the coating, which becomes fixed.

Packing

The cereals are ready to be packed. A plastic bag is the most frequently used packing. This bag is sealed. The bag is put in a cardboard box, which is especially used for solidity and identity. The storage life of cereals in a closed packing ranges from several months to a year. An open packing should be prevented from moisture (like air) coming in touch with the cereals. This would make the cereals soft and tough.

---

Reply to this article

All fields are required. Your personal information will not be displayed on our website. Hyfoma does not supply machines, but only refers to the companies that do. Most of the suppliers listed supply machines for the food industry, and do not produce food themselves.

Name:		Email:
Function:		Company: