Cooking bag with integrated features

Abstract

There is provided a cooking bag having one or more integrated features for assisting in cooking a food item via sous vide or other convectional cooking methods. One such feature is an interior bag wall that separates its interior volume into first and second compartments, one for a food item to be cooked and the other for a solid seasoning item. The interior bag wall includes a liquid permeable portion that allows liquid to pass between the first and second compartments but inhibits the passage of solids. Another feature is a thermometer integrated into the bag for indicating whether a food item has reached a predetermined threshold temperature during cooking.

1 . A cooking bag, comprising:
 a plurality of bag walls defining an interior volume of the bag and a bag opening; and   an interior bag wall that divides the interior volume into a first compartment and a second compartment;   at least a portion of the interior bag wall being liquid permeable while preventing passage of solids having a mean diameter greater than 1 mm such that liquid can pass between the first compartment and the second compartment through the interior bag wall, the second compartment containing a solid seasoning item for seasoning a food item being cooked or to be cooked in the first compartment.   
     
     
         2 . The cooking bag of  claim 1 , the liquid permeable portion of the interior bag wall comprising a plurality of perforations having a diameter of not greater than 3 mm. 
     
     
         3 . The cooking bag of  claim 2 , wherein the solid seasoning item is a powder seasoning. 
     
     
         4 . The cooking bag of  claim 1 , the liquid permeable portion of the interior bag wall comprising a liquid permeable membrane. 
     
     
         5 . The cooking bag of  claim 1 , further comprising sealing flaps adjacent to the bag opening configured to be heat-welded together in face-to-face abutment to seal the bag for cooking. 
     
     
         6 . The cooking bag of  claim 5 , wherein the interior volume is hermetically sealed upon heat-welding together of said sealing flaps. 
     
     
         7 . The cooking bag of  claim 1 , further comprising a second opening providing communication between said first and second compartments, and a flap configured to reversibly cover said second opening in order to isolate said second opening from said first opening and to inhibit passage of a seasoning item therebetween. 
     
     
         8 . The cooking bag of  claim 7 , said flap being biased toward a closed position covering said second opening. 
     
     
         9 . The cooking bag of  claim 7 , said second opening facing away from said bag opening. 
     
     
         10 . The cooking bag of  claim 1 , further comprising a thermometer received and hermetically sealed in a hole through one of said plurality of bag walls, said thermometer comprising a piercing portion extending into said interior volume of the bag. 
     
     
         11 . The cooking bag of  claim 10 , said thermometer comprising a temperature effector adapted to react or change configuration upon reaching a threshold temperature, said threshold temperature being predetermined to correspond to a final desired cooking temperature of said food item. 
     
     
         12 . A cooking bag comprising:
 a plurality of bag walls defining an interior volume and a bag opening;   a first bag wall of the plurality of bag walls comprising a thermometer hermetically sealed in a hole therein, the thermometer comprising a body having a piercing portion disposed within said interior volume, a temperature effector disposed within said body adjacent or within said piercing portion, or thermally communicating with the piercing portion, and a temperature indicator disposed outside said bag, wherein the temperature effector and temperature indicator are coupled together such that upon the temperature effector being heated to a predetermined threshold temperature, the temperature indicator provides an indication that the predetermined threshold temperature has been reached.   
     
     
         13 . The cooking bag of  claim 12 , the temperature effector comprising a spring-loaded stem having a distal end initially adhesively retained within a heat-softenable plug, wherein the temperature indicator moves from a first position to a second position upon softening of said plug when said threshold temperature is reached thereby releasing the distal end of said spring-loaded stem. 
     
     
         14 . The cooking bag of  claim 13 , said heat-softenable plug being located within or adjacent the piercing portion within said body such that it is in thermal communication therewith. 
     
     
         15 . The cooking bag of  claim 12 , the temperature effector comprising a thermochromic material that is transparent above the predetermined threshold temperature and non-transparent below the predetermined threshold temperature. 
     
     
         16 . The cooking bag of  claim 15 , wherein the temperature effector covers that temperature indicator such that the temperature indicator is visible only when the temperature effector is transparent. 
     
     
         17 . The cooking bag of  claim 16 , further comprising a conducting rod within said body and having a first end adjacent the piercing portion and a second end adjacent the temperature effector, said conducting rod providing thermal communication between the piercing portion and the thermal effector. 
     
     
         18 . The cooking bag of  claim 16 , further comprising a cover that covers the temperature effector and temperature indicator to thermally isolate them from an environment outside of the cooking bag. 
     
     
         19 . The cooking bag of  claim 12 , said predetermined threshold temperature being tuned to correspond to a desired final cooking temperature of a food item cooking or to be cooked in said bag.