Tomato sauce is used in many food products, including frozen foods, pasta sauces, sandwiches, pizzas, and as one of the most common food condiments. A tomato sauce is usually made entirely from tomatoes or from tomato paste. It also contains water, sugar, vinegar, salt, and seasonings. The desired viscosity is usually achieved by using starch-based thickeners.
Ketchup is a type of condiment made from similar ingredients, although tomato paste is used in its production instead of tomatoes. Highly concentrated ketchup sauces obtain their viscous content from a combination of water trapped in the fibrous strands in the tomato paste and the gel-like effect of the pectin substance present in the tomatoes. A homogenizer is used to obtain the desired viscosity. This is common with lower concentration ketchups, which may also contain starch-based thickeners.
Ketchup and tomato sauce manufacturing process
The process recipe and the appropriate viscosity for ketchup and tomato sauce can vary depending on the intended use of the final product, but typical process requirements are as follows:
The mixing equipment must be capable of completely dissolving the powdered ingredients in the water so that the product does not clump.
If the product is made entirely from tomatoes, it must be thoroughly ground before being added to the mix.
Insoluble particles in the tomatoes must be thoroughly dispersed and ground to achieve a smooth, uniform texture.
The carotene pigments in the tomatoes must also be thoroughly dispersed to provide the proper color.
To increase the water-holding capacity, the fibrous strands in the tomatoes must be thoroughly dispersed, which increases the viscosity.
After mixing, the product may be passed through a homogenizer to achieve the required consistency.
Production Challenges
Manufacturers face challenges when using conventional mixers and agitators:
Additives added to the product to increase the consistency of the product become lumpy when dissolved, and conventional mixers are unable to disperse them.
Incompletely dissolved materials may stick to the walls of the tank or mixer.
It takes a long time to achieve the final mix and complete the production process.
Dissolving tomato paste in water takes a long time, because conventional mixers cannot mix liquids of different viscosities.
To pass the mix through the homogenizer, the product particles must be completely dispersed. Conventional mixers are not able to do this process.
Several operations may be performed through the homogenizer to obtain the desired product.
Excessively long mixing time destroys the texture of the product and damages the water holding capacity, resulting in the desired color not being achieved.
The homogenization and mixing process can damage the texture of the final ketchup sauce product.
The mixing process of products that are completely made from tomatoes may cause the final product to become bitter.
The solution provided by Arkan Felez Company
The Arkan Felez Company’s vacuum homogenizer mixer can solve these problems and eliminate the need for additional processes such as crushing, defoaming, and some additional homogenization steps. The vacuum homogenizer mixer can be used in all stages of the production of tomato sauces and ketchup. Some of the advantages of using these mixers are listed below:
It significantly reduces the process time.
Rapid dispersion of thickeners and stabilizers and prevention of their caking
Improved performance of the raw ingredients
Smooth and uniform texture and improved product consistency
Improved color
The product fed to the homogenizer is uniform and uniform and its particle size is small, allowing for faster processing through the homogenizer.
Since the entire manufacturing process is under vacuum, the baking process takes place at a lower temperature than atmospheric mixers, so the final product has a better color.