Sausage is a kind of fast food that is very popular among consumers, and the processing of sausage is inseparable from the casing. The casing has a great influence on the shape, taste, color, and taste of the sausage. Therefore, the performance of the casing is very important for sausage processing.

Structure and Characteristics of Cellulose Casing

1. Material of Cellulose Casing

Cellulose casings are generally regenerated natural plant cellulose, and the regenerated natural plant cellulose generally has a layered structure, and certain strength and elasticity can be obtained by cross-linking multiple layers of regenerated cellulose molecules into a network structure. The nascent regenerated cellulose molecule has a high degree of polymerization and high mechanical strength. After processing and drying, the tensile strength can reach 2~3N/mm, and the elongation rate is above 12%.

2. Characteristics of Cellulose Casing

Cellulose casing has excellent processing properties. The strength of the cellulose casing shrinking rod is large, and the force of the pleats after shrinking is moderate, which is very suitable for high-speed and automatic filling. Because of its multi-layer net structure, the cellulose casing has good air permeability and excellent smoke permeability, making it an ideal smoked casing.

It has good thermal stability, less deformation during cooking, and can realize rapid peeling of the peeling machine after cooking. Because the inside of the casing is pre-sprayed with a peeling coating, the meat will not stick, and the surface of the sausage is smooth and good.

3. Cellulose Casing Processing Flow and Equipment

The process of using cellulose casing for sausage processing is basically similar, including meat preparation → filling → hanging → steaming → packaging. The difference is that small-caliber cellulose casings do not need to be soaked before use, and because regenerated cellulose is not edible, cellulose casings are usually peeled after cooking, and there are a few that do not, such as smoke-colored ones. Cellulose casing.

A fully automated sausage filling production line usually includes the following components: vacuum sausage stuffer, casing feeding device, guiding device, ligation, and hanging device. This type of filling machine has a special fixed-length device and a precise ligation control device, which can produce sausages of uniform length and has a wide range of practicability. It is suitable for the production of small-caliber sausage products with a diameter of 13-50mm. In addition, the peeling machine is also indispensable equipment.

Common Problems in the Production of Sausages

From the perspective of sausage processing, combined with the characteristics of cellulose casing products, preliminary analysis, and discussion of the problems that are likely to occur in the process of using cellulose casing for sausage processing are carried out.

1. Can’t Continuous Automatic Feeding

Loading refers to the process in which the filling machine automatically loads the cellulose casing into the filling tube. A major feature of cellulose casing is that it is suitable for rapid filling with automated equipment, so accurate feeding of casings is the first step in the filling process. Casing rods must have greater strength so that the rods will not break during the automatic feeding process. Because once the rods are broken, the automatic feeding may not be completed, causing production to stop, and even machine parts may be damaged. At the same time, the casing stick needs to be hard and straight, and the opening should be smooth and not deformable in order to realize the accurate feeding of the filling tube. Compared with the artificial feeding casing, this undoubtedly increases the production difficulty of the cellulose casing.

2. The Center of the Casing Stick Does not Match the Filling Tube

If the center of the casing rod is too small, the filling tube cannot be inserted, or the casing cannot slide freely on the filling tube; if the center hole of the casing rod is too large, the casing cannot rotate freely with the filling tube and cannot be kinked. It is prone to the problem of multiple bubbles in the casing voids or wrinkles on the surface of the sausage. At this time, it is necessary to check the specifications of the casing or replace the filling tube. Cross the head in the middle.

3. The Stick is too Long or not Enough

The casing rod should meet the requirements of the standard rod length and match the length of the filling tube. Insufficient compression or elastic elongation of the casing rod may cause the casing rod to be too long. If the casing rod is too long, it will easily cause the rod to break during feeding, or the excessively long part needs to be manually removed. If the casing is compressed too much and the length of the casing rod is insufficient, the casing rod may be broken or the feeding may be unsmooth due to excessive pull-out force during filling. At this time, the filling pressure can be appropriately increased or the filling speed can be slowed down to adapt to the relatively high pressure. Large pull-out force.

4. Quantitative Controlling

For sausage products that require higher packaging and appearance, quantitative stability is an important quality indicator. The size and thickness of casing should be uniform, and the deviation should be strictly controlled within the standard range. Otherwise, it will cause uneven thickness and unequal length of the sausage. In terms of filling equipment, the problem of inaccurate quantification may also be caused by the following factors: the filling speed is too high; the vacuum is too low; the filling pipe is too thin or too long; the hopper material is too small; the vacuum pipe is blocked or the air pressure is unstable, etc.

5. Damaged Filling

Damage is a common problem encountered in the filling process. The damage of the cellulose casing during filling is mostly caused by kinks, so the type of the filling tube and the twister must be matched; it may also be due to burrs or debris. After the casing is wet, its strength is reduced, leading to cracks or defects in the casing. For example, due to the wear of the casing caused by the machine during the shrinking process, it is necessary to carry out strict control and inspection in the production.

6. Poor Shape of Sausage

Poor appearance of sausages includes conditions such as overfilling, pear-shaped ends, uneven thickness, or varying lengths. Overfilling can easily lead to casing rupture, or difficulty in subsequent peeling. In view of this situation, it is necessary to check whether there is too much-filling pressure, or whether the knotting and ligation device is set in place. The pear-shaped end of the sausage mainly considers whether the meat is too thin, or the filling capacity is insufficient, and the filling is not full. Or when the intestines are hanging for too long, the end may swell due to the falling of the meat. At this time, the meat formula needs to be adjusted and filled according to the recommended filling caliber. In view of the uneven thickness of sausages, it should be investigated whether the filling pressure is stable, whether the meat preparation is uniform, whether the fluidity is qualified, and whether the kinking device is smooth. On the basis that there are no problems in these aspects, we will investigate whether the elasticity of the cellulose casing is stable and whether there is a deviation in the caliber.

7. Casing Cracked or Burst during Cooking

In this case, the first thing to do is to check whether there is any slag on the smoking processing line, whether there are burrs on the smoke trolley, or whether the sausage is too full. Because during the cooking process, the meat expands too much or unevenly, the casing loses much water and becomes fragile, resulting in excessive shrinkage, which leads to rupture. Also, check whether the knot is too tight to eliminate the risk of losing kinks. In addition, the humidity of the smoking-room should not be too low. Too low relative humidity will have a greater impact on the rupture of the casing.

8. Poor Smoky Color

The phenomenon is that the color is too dark or smoky does not color. Controlling the smoking temperature and time is an important part of obtaining a uniform and stable smoking effect. The relative humidity control in the smoking room also has a greater influence. It is usually controlled at 35%~55%, and it may be higher when producing specific products. The relative humidity must be uniform, and uneven humidity will cause uneven smoke and flower skin problems. In addition, spraying too much or too little peeling liquid in the cellulose casing will also affect the effect of smoking. At this time, it can be improved by adjusting the smoking temperature or duration.

9. Sausage Peeling

Before peeling, the sausage must be cooled down. For example, use salt water to cool down, otherwise, it will cause difficulty in peeling. When peeling, the humidity should not be too low and the temperature should not be high. The effect of using a steam peeling machine is better. Common peeling problems include the inability to peel the casing, incomplete peeling, and cut marks on the sausage. You should first make sure that the cutter used is suitable, and you should also check whether the steam pressure is sufficient. If the sausage is filled with dissatisfaction or overfill and uneven shape in the pre-processing, the peeling device needs to be adjusted appropriately to ensure the smooth progress of the peeling process.