Production of thin, irregular chips with scalloped edges and surface bubbles

Abstract

A dough sheet for producing thin, baked chips is obtained continuously by compressing a dough sheet to a thickness of less than or equal to about 0.035 inch between counter-rotating gauge rolls while maintaining the surface of each gauge roll at a temperature of about 85° F. to about 95° F. Maintaining the gauge roll surface temperature at about 85° F. to about 95° F. avoids sticking, tearing, and shredding of the thin dough sheet as it is compressed and transferred by the gauge rolls, even at high production rates or line speeds. A rotary cutter is employed to obtain thin, irregularly shaped, scallop-edged snacks in a variety of shapes from a single dough sheet without producing dough scraps between the pieces.

1 . A method for producing thin, baked chips, comprising: 
 a) forming a dough comprising about 30-80 wt. % of an uncooked wheat flour based upon the weight of the dough into a dough sheet,    b) reducing the thickness of the dough sheet using a pair of counterrotating gauge rolls, wherein the nip or gap between the counterrotating gauge rolls is less than or equal to about 0.035 inches,    c) maintaining the surface of each of said gauge rolls at a temperature of about 85° F. to about 95° F.,    d) cutting the dough sheet into a plurality of pieces having different shapes with a single rotary cutter, and    e) baking the pieces.    
     
     
         2 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the dough sheet is transferred off of an upstream conveyor into said nip or gap and then transferred out of the nip or gap to a downstream conveyor.  
     
     
         3 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the nip or gap of the gauge rolls is less than 0.025 inch.  
     
     
         4 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the nip or gap of the gauge rolls is less than or equal to 0.022 inch.  
     
     
         5 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said gauge rolls reduce the thickness of the dough sheet to less than 0.030 inch.  
     
     
         6 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said gauge rolls are heated to maintain a surface temperature of about 85° F. to about 95° F.  
     
     
         7 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said gauge rolls are cooled to maintain a surface temperature of about 85° F. to about 95° F.  
     
     
         8 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the surface temperature of the gauge roll is monitored and maintained at a temperature of about 85° F. to about 95° F. using a circulating heat exchange fluid.  
     
     
         9 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the dough sheet is reduced in thickness using at least one pair of counterrotating auxiliary rolls prior to the reduction in thickness by said gauge rolls.  
     
     
         10 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said dough comprises: 
 about 30% by weight to about 80% by weight of an uncooked wheat flour, based upon the weight of the dough, about 3% by weight to about 20% by weight of a pregelatinized waxy maize starch, based upon the weight of the wheat flour, and at least one potato starch.    
     
     
         11 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the dough sheet is cut into pieces using a rotary cutter.  
     
     
         12 . A method as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the dough sheet is cut into a plurality of differently shaped pieces without interstitial dough between the pieces.  
     
     
         13 . A method as claimed in  claim 12 , wherein each of the pieces is irregularly shaped.  
     
     
         14 . A method as claimed in  claim 13 , wherein each of the pieces have scalloped edges.  
     
     
         15 . A method as claimed in  claim 14 , wherein each of the pieces has at least one concave or convex edge.  
     
     
         16 . A method as claimed in  claim 15 , wherein each of the pieces has a plurality of docker holes.  
     
     
         17 . A method as claimed in  claim 16 , wherein said plurality of docker holes comprises two sizes of docker holes.  
     
     
         18 . A method as claimed in  claim 16 , wherein the pieces are baked to produce a plurality of surface bubbles in the baked pieces, each bubble comprising an air pocket which extends both above and below adjacent generally flat, crispy, substantially unleavened areas of the baked pieces.  
     
     
         19 . A method as claimed in  claim 12 , wherein the weight of each of said pieces is at least substantially the same.  
     
     
         20 . A method as claimed in  claim 12 , wherein said dough sheet is cut all the way through with a blunt cutting edge to obtain said pieces, and said pieces are spaced from each other by transferring the pieces from one conveyor to a faster moving conveyer.  
     
     
         21 . A method for producing thin, irregularly shaped, scallop-edged baked chips comprising: 
 rotary-cutting a dough sheet that has been compressed to a thickness of less than or equal to about 0.035 inch into a plurality of differently shaped pieces without producing interstitial dough between the pieces, each of the pieces having scalloped edges, and baking the pieces.    
     
     
         22 . A method as claimed in  claim 21 , wherein said dough sheet thickness is obtained using a pair of counterrotating gauge rolls having a surface temperature of about 85° F. to about 95° F.  
     
     
         23 . A method as claimed in  claim 21 , wherein the dough sheet has been compressed to a thickness of less than or equal to 0.030 inch.  
     
     
         24 . An apparatus for producing thin, irregularly shaped, scallop-edged baked chips, comprising: 
 a pair of counterrotating gauge rolls for producing a thin dough sheet, wherein the nip or gap between the counterrotating gauge rolls is less than or equal to about 0.035 inches, and    a rotary cutter for cutting said thin dough sheet into a plurality of differently shaped dough pieces without producing interstitial dough between the pieces, each of the pieces having scalloped edges.    
     
     
         25 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 24 , wherein the nip or gap between the counterrotating gauge rolls is less than or equal to 0.030 inches.  
     
     
         26 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 24 , wherein said rotary cutter has blunt cutting edges for cutting said dough sheet into pieces.  
     
     
         27 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 24 , wherein said cutter cuts the dough into pieces which each have at least one concave or convex edge.  
     
     
         28 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 24 , wherein said cutter has dockering pins for producing a plurality of two sizes of docker holes in each dough piece.  
     
     
         29 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 24 , wherein said rotary cutter has a plurality of rows of cutting elements which extend circumferentially around the rotary cutter, wherein adjacent cutting elements within each row produce a differently shaped dough piece.  
     
     
         30 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 29 , wherein adjacent cutting elements within adjacent rows produce a differently shaped dough piece.  
     
     
         31 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 24 , wherein said gauge rolls have jackets for a heat exchange medium, a temperature monitor and temperature controller for maintaining the surface of the gauge rolls at a desired temperature.  
     
     
         32 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 24 , further comprising at least one pair of counterrotating auxiliary rolls are arranged upstream of said gauge rolls for reducing the thickness of a dough sheet for feeding to said nip or gap of the gauge rolls.  
     
     
         33 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 32 , further comprising an upstream conveyor for transferring a dough sheet obtained from said at least one pair of auxiliary rolls into said nip or gap, and a downstream conveyor for receiving said thin dough sheet from the nip or gap of the gauge rolls and for transferring said thin dough sheet to said rotary cutter.  
     
     
         34 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 24 , wherein said gauge rolls are untapered along their lengths.  
     
     
         35 . A baked snack chip, comprising: 
 at least one flour;    a pregelatinized waxy maize starch; and    an unmodified, non-crosslinked pregelatinized potato starch in an amount of from about 2 wt. % to about 7 wt. %, based upon the weight of the flour,    said snack having an irregular shape, docker holes, and scalloped edges or sides, at least one of the edges or sides being concave or convex in shape, said snack having surface bubbles and a crispy texture, and being baked from a dough piece that has been compressed to a thickness of less than 0.030 inch.    
     
     
         36 . A baked snack chip as claimed in  claim 35 , which has at least five edges or sides.  
     
     
         37 . A baked snack chip as claimed in  claim 35 , wherein a plurality of edges or sides has a convex or concave shape.  
     
     
         38 . A baked snack chip as claimed in  claim 35 , wherein said snack chip is baked from a dough comprising: 
 about 30% by weight to about 80% by weight of an uncooked wheat flour, based upon the weight of the dough,    a pregelatinized waxy maize starch in an amount of from about 3% by weight to about 20% by weight, based upon the weight of the wheat flour, and    at least one potato starch.    
     
     
         39 . A baked snack chip as claimed in  claim 35 , which is baked from a dough that has been compressed to a thickness of less than 0.025 inch.  
     
     
         40 . An array of dough pieces bakeable into snack chips, comprising: 
 a plurality of dough pieces arranged in rows, each dough piece being cut from a single dough sheet that has been compressed to a thickness of less than or about equal to about 0.035 without producing interstitial dough between the pieces,    wherein each of the pieces has an irregular shape, docker holes, and scalloped edges or sides, at least one of the edges or sides being concave or convex in shape, wherein adjacent dough pieces are differently shaped from each other.    
     
     
         41 . An array as claimed in  claim 40 , wherein the weight of each dough piece is at least substantially the same.  
     
     
         42 . An array as claimed in  claim 40 , wherein at least eighteen dough pieces have different shapes.  
     
     
         43 . An array as claimed in  claim 40 , wherein a dough piece shape is repeated within a row every 4 to 6 dough pieces.