Method for separating clods and the like from potatoes, which includes placing the clods and potatoes on a first belt for transporting the potatoes and clods toward a forward end and positioning a second belt spaced horizontally apart from and vertically lower than the end of the first belt such that potatoes leaving the end travel through the air and land on the second belt. The clods are detected by a detector that includes a magnet and a coil positioned in the field of the magnet. The clods a...

A process for preparing french fried potatoes for freezing and subsequent finish frying to resemble closely french fried potatoes prepared directly from fresh potatoes, in which after completion of the preliminary potato treatment steps of peeling, trimming, cutting into french fry size strips, and washing, the strips are then treated with hot oil for a brief period, and that step is repeated following at least one treatment of the potato strips to a hot, (300.degree. to 400.degree. F.) high vel...

A process for preparing frozen par fried potatoes which, when finish fried, have a crisp surface texture and a mealy internal core, and remain crisp and rigid for extended periods of time after finish frying. Potatoes which have been peeled, trimmed, cut into strips and blanched, are subjected to a two stage drying procedure, in which the strips are first exposed to high velocity ambient air for a period of time sufficient to reduce their weight by about 8%-15%, and are then dried in circulating...

A process of preserving vegetable produce, such as potatoes and green vegetables, in closed packages, in which peeled or shelled raw produce which may be sliced or otherwise comminuted is vacuum-packed in plastics containers which are then treated, in a cooking receptacle, with a heating medium at a temperature of about 100.degree. C. while subjected to an external pressure in said cooking receptacle exceeding the internal pressure in said packages and are finally cooled while still subject to t...

A system and method of operation performing automated optical inspection to remove peel-bearing defective potato pieces from a random mixture of peel-bearing defective and acceptable potato pieces use near infrared light as a source of illumination. The system implements a method of illuminating the mixture with near infrared light, detecting light reflected by the potato pieces under inspection, identifying defective potato piece surface regions based on the detected reflections, and removing t...

A stone separation table (30,70) selectively separates and drops stones, clods, and dirt (27) between selected rollers while conveying potatoes (33) or other root crops from one side of the table to the other. The stone separation table incorporates sets of rollers (32,72) including separating (36,76) and spacing (40,80) rollers of substantially the same diameter. The sets of rollers are coplanar forming a planar conveying level (45,75) with all rollers driven in the same direction of rotation. ...

Microwavable french fries are prepared by with at least one step in which potato strips are treated in a hot water solution containing starch to form a starch layer in the top surface layer of the potato strips, and by subsequent frying and freezing. A box for cooking the microwave french fries includes top, bottom and side panels that have at least one susceptor board substantially covering them. Prepared potato strips are oriented in the box during packing to be parallel and the box opened and...

A process for drying raw agricultural products for feed purposes. The raw product is first pulped into a raw and wet pulped product which is thereafter moved into a pulp box for distribution onto a roller drier. The product is heated while in the pulp box, and then distributed onto the roller drier and dried while in contact therewith. The dried product is then removed from the roller drier and is thereafter broken into flakes.

An uncooked strip of extruded potato mix having an elongated body and a polygonal cross section defined by concave sides of predetermined radius of curvature substantially equal to the mean of the longest and shortest dimension of the cross section of the strip meeting at rounded corners, said rounded corners having a predetermined radius of curvature which is substantially equal to about one-eleventh of the radius of said concave sides, the concave sides being deformable by cooking to acquire a...

Flours prepared from white sweet potatoes, cassava, edible aroids, tropical yams, lotus, arrowhead, buckbean, and amaranth, and a variety of different food products prepared from them, are substitutes for wheat and other grains, legumes, milk, eggs, and a partial substitute for nuts. A variety of different food products, prepared from edible roots, seeds, and starchy fruits including potatoes, arrowroot, water chestnut, sugar beets, jicama, buckwheat, legumes, millet, milo, barley, oats, corn, t...