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Baking |
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Traditionally, prior to the invention of the extruder, canned food, meat or table scraps were mixed with a “mixer meal” The original mixer meals were baked using industrial ovens. However, as manufacturers started using extruders, many stopped using ovens and started manufacturing mixer meals using extruders.
You can easily tell which are extruded or baked – if the shape of the food is uniform, chances are its made on an extruder, whereas baked products tend to be of a non uniform rough cut kibble.
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So why is baking different to extrusion? |
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Ingredients such as meats, flour, oils etc are blended together in a mixer. Water is then added and the raw materials are mixed until they become dough. This normally takes up to 20 minutes, and it’s a very similar process to you making dough at home |
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The dough is “worked” in the mixer so that the gluten (a protein in wheat, barley and oats) is stretched. This makes it easier to digest without problems |
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The dough is then transferred to a “sheeter” which rolls out the dough into a long line. The dough is conveyed through the sheeter on a belt and it then enters the oven |
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Industrial or travelling ovens vary in length but are typically 50m to 100m long
The oven works in a similar way to your own oven in so far they are convection ovens using heat and air to cook products. The oven is divided into zones so that precise cooking can be undertaken
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