Food Tumbler

Abstract

A counter-top appliance has a food container with internal fins extending inward from the outer wall at an angle offset from radial. The food container is coupled to a motor for rotation in either of two directions. One direction of rotation produces a scooping, elevating and subsequent discharge of liquid and fluent materials such as might be useful for washing or breading, while the second direction of rotation presents a surface adapted for massaging meat during marinating. The food container is preferably sealed through vacuum, and has a simple geometry which greatly facilitates thorough cleaning of the container. Meats, produce, pasta, and other diverse foods are processed using the counter-top appliance, and a method for processing one or a sequential set of foods is disclosed.

1 . In combination: 
 a sealable container that receives and retains foods within an outer wall having at least one paddle therein which extends inward from said outer wall in a direction which is angularly offset from radial;    a motor; and    a coupler for transmitting motion from said motor to said scalable container in either of a first direction of rotation which rotates said sealable container to trap liquid between said paddle and said outer wall above an at-rest liquid level and a second direction of rotation opposite said first direction of rotation which rotates said sealable container to discharge liquid between said paddle and said outer wall by said at-rest liquid level.    
   
   
       2 . The combination of  claim 1  further comprising a basket inside of said sealable container and said at least one paddle having an external surface facing said sealable container outer wall and an internal surface, and at least one opening extending through said basket from said basket external surface to said basket internal surface through which said liquid may pass.  
   
   
       3 . The combination of  claim 1  further comprising a port extending through said sealable container outer wall which permits air to pass selectively from an interior of said sealable container to an exterior of said sealable container to thereby form a partial vacuum therein.  
   
   
       4 . The combination of  claim 3  further comprising an acetic acid solution within said sealable container.  
   
   
       5 . The combination of  claim 4  wherein said foods further comprise produce.  
   
   
       6 . The combination of  claim 4  wherein said foods further comprise meat.  
   
   
       7 . The combination of  claim 3  further comprising: 
 a removable cover enclosing an opening in said sealable container;    a gasket seal between said removable cover and said outer wall; and    a partial vacuum within said sealable container and atmospheric pressure exterior to said sealable container, said gasket seal compressed by forces generated from a pressure difference resulting from said partial vacuum.    
   
   
       8 . The combination of  claim 1  wherein said sealable container has an internal diameter of less than eight inches and a rate of rotation of said sealable container occurs between twenty and twenty-five rotations per minute.  
   
   
       9 . The combination of  claim 8  further comprising tumbling meat for less than forty minutes.  
   
   
       10 . A household kitchen counter-top appliance adapted for the tumbling of various solid and liquid foods and food ingredients within a tumbler and having a motor for spinning said tumbler about a rotary axis, said tumbler consisting essentially of: 
 a generally circular bottom;    cylindrical side walls extending from said bottom to an opening distal said bottom and forming a rim adjacent said opening; and    a cover engaging said rim and retained thereto solely by a pressure differential between an interior and an exterior of said tumbler.    
   
   
       11 . The household kitchen counter-top appliance of  claim 10  further comprising a means for preferentially transporting said various solid and liquid foods and food ingredients adjacent said cylindrical side walls during said spinning in a first direction about said rotary axis above a horizontal center of said retaining means and subsequently releasing said various solid and liquid foods to accelerate said effective amount of said various solid and liquid foods through the force of gravity when said tumbler spins, said transporting means ineffective at said preferential transporting of said various solid and liquid foods and food ingredients when spinning in a second direction about said rotary axis opposite said first direction.