Free flowing vegetable powder and method for its manufacture

Abstract

A free flowing vegetable powder includes an intimate mixture of at least three different dehydrated vegetables including: 5-60% of onion by weight of vegetable dry matter; 0-90% by weight of vegetable dry matter of moderately colored vegetable selected from the group consisting of vegetables belonging to the genus Cucurbita , vegetables belonging to the genus Oleracea , sweet corn, sweet potato, green bean, edamame, celery and combinations thereof; and 5-95% by weight of vegetable dry matter of intensely colored vegetable selected from the group consisting of tomato, red bell pepper, red beet, radicchio, swiss chard, rhubarb, peppers, yam, Adzuki beans, carrot, green pea, green bell pepper, asparagus, spinach, Brussels sprouts, kale, egg plant and combinations thereof. The vegetable powder according to the present invention can advantageously be employed in fabricated savory snacks to deliver nutritional benefit, a considerable vegetable serving size, color and taste.

1 . A free flowing vegetable powder, comprising an intimate mixture of at least three different dehydrated vegetables that together represent at least 60 wt % of the vegetable dry matter contained in the powder, said at least three vegetables comprising:
 5-60% by weight of the vegetable dry matter of onion;   20-90% by weight of the vegetable dry matter of moderately colored vegetable selected from the group consisting of vegetables belonging to the genus  Cucurbita , vegetables belonging to the genus  Oleracea , sweet corn, sweet potato, green bean, edamame, celery and combinations thereof; and   5-75% by weight of the vegetable dry matter of intensely colored vegetable selected from the group consisting of tomato, red bell pepper, red beet, radicchio, swiss chard, rhubarb, peppers, yam, Adzuki beans, carrot, green pea, green bell pepper, asparagus, spinach, Brussels sprouts, kale, egg plant and combinations thereof,   wherein the at least three vegetables have been co-dried from a homogenous mixture of an aqueous blend of the vegetables, and   said free flowing powder has a moisture content of less than 10 wt % and a mass weighted average particle size of 10-500 microns.   
     
     
         2 . The vegetable powder according to  claim 1 , wherein 10 grams of the vegetable powder represent a fresh vegetable serving of at least 50 grams. 
     
     
         3 . The vegetable powder according to  claim 1 , wherein less than 5 wt % of the particles contained in the free flowing vegetable powder have a particle size in excess of 800 microns. 
     
     
         4 . The vegetable powder according to  claim 1 , wherein the powder is instantly hydratable. 
     
     
         5 . The vegetable powder according to  claim 1 , wherein the color of the powder is yellow, orange, red, pink, green or purple. 
     
     
         6 . The vegetable powder according to  claim 1 , wherein the dietary fiber content provided by the combination of onion, moderately colored vegetable and intensely colored vegetable exceeds 6% by weight of vegetable dry matter. 
     
     
         7 . The vegetable powder according to  claim 1 , wherein the moderately colored vegetable is a vegetable belonging to the genus  Cucurbita.    
     
     
         8 . The vegetable powder according to  claim 1 , wherein the intensely colored vegetable is selected from the group consisting of tomato, red bell pepper, red beet and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         9 . The vegetable powder according to  claim 1 , wherein the at least three vegetables include 5-40% by weight of the vegetable dry matter of tomato. 
     
     
         10 . The vegetable powder according to  claim 1 , wherein the at least three vegetables comprise:
 5-20% by weight of the vegetable dry matter of onion;   at least 60% by weight of the vegetable dry matter of a vegetable belonging to the genus  Cucurbita ; and   5-35% by weight of the vegetable dry matter of intensely colored vegetable selected from the group consisting of tomato, red bell pepper, red beet and combinations thereof.   
     
     
         11 . The vegetable powder according to  claim 1 , wherein the at least three vegetables comprise:
 5-25% by weight of the vegetable dry matter of onion;   less than 60% by weight of the vegetable dry matter of a vegetable belonging to the genus  Cucurbita ; and   25-75% by weight of the vegetable dry matter of intensely colored vegetable selected from the group consisting of tomato, red bell pepper, red beet and combinations thereof.   
     
     
         12 . The vegetable powder according to claim  17 , wherein each of the at least three vegetables represent at least wt % of the water soluble solids contained within said particles. 
     
     
         13 . The vegetable powder according to  claim 1 , wherein the vegetable powder has a uniform color distribution. 
     
     
         14 . The vegetable powder according to  claim 1 , wherein the at least three different dehydrated vegetables together represent at least 75 wt % of the vegetable dry matter contained in the powder.