2013 Volume 46 Issue 1 Pages 31-38
Changes in the internal temperature, hardness and NaCl concentration of a sample were simulated by computer program using measured changes for 1-4 kg of water for cooking root vegetables by boiling for a given time and using residual heat. The seasoning time for the whole sample to obtain the optimum average NaCl concentration, and the softening time for the center of the sample to reach the optimum hardness were calculated. Samples of 1-3 cm cube of Japanese radish, carrot and potato were used. The calculated seasoning time was in the order of potato>carrot>Japanese radish, and softening time was in the order of Japanese radish>carrot>potato, the larger the surface area with the same volume, the shorter the time for both. The , seasoning time was longer than the softening time without residual heat, except for the 1-cm cube of Japanese radish. With residual heat, the softening time was longer than the seasoning time with a large quantity of water in the case of a 2- and 3-cm cube, and for any quantity of water in the case of a 1-cm cube.
