What Is Aseptic Puree & How Can You Use It?
Fruit puree, particularly apple puree, is sweet delicious and versatile. Though it might have been on a small scale, it’s likely that you’ll have come across fruit puree in one way or another during your life. But you may not have paid much attention to it until now.
It can be used in several different ways when cooking and is popular with manufacturers and others in the food industry.
But have you also heard of aseptic puree? If not, this guide is for you. Below, we’re going to take a look at what aseptic puree is, its key benefits and how it can be used.
Read on to find out more.
What is an aseptic puree?
In order to understand what an aseptic puree is, let’s first get to grips with the word aseptic (as we’re sure many of you are already familiar with the word puree). Aseptic is a technique that involves sterilising something to ensure it is completely free from harmful bacteria and to prevent contamination from pathogens.
This is used a lot in the packaging and food industries. Aseptic packaging means packing and preserving a sterile product in a sterile container.
So what is an aseptic puree?
Based on what we now know, an aspect puree is a product made from perishable fruits and vegetables, which are then processed and packaged in aseptic containers to remove any harmful germs and extend their shelf life.
How are aseptic purees made?
The aseptic process is a little more sophisticated than just canning foods. The process can be broken down into three fundamental steps to help you better understand what aseptic purees are and how they’re produced. These steps include:
1. Sufficiently killing any bacteria
All fruit and vegetables are washed and any skins, rinds or seeds removed. It is then processed into a smooth, pourable puree. This is thermally treated to kill any germs before being cooled and ready to package.
2. Packaging the puree
Now the puree itself is essentially sterilised, it needs to be placed into aseptic packaging. This will take place in a clean and sterile environment. The aseptic packaging helps to retain taste, texture, aroma and nutritional value without the need to be kept in a refrigerator.
3. Storing the puree
Finally, the puree must be stored in the right conditions to maintain the sterility of the packaging and the shelf life of the product. Typically, an aseptic product can be stored for up to a year, though this may vary for fruit and vegetable purees. It’s important that the packaging is not damaged or punctured and that it is only opened when it’s ready to be used.
What are the benefits of choosing aseptic purees?
As we previously mentioned, fruit or vegetable purees like this are often used in the food industry, but even if these are being used for individual purposes, there are some clear benefits to aseptic purees. These are:
- An enhanced and more concentrated flavour
- Guaranteed food safety standards
- A longer shelf life
- Eliminating the need for artificial preservatives, making these products more natural and healthy
- Better consistency in terms of the quality of the product when compared with fresh fruit or vegetables
- Convenient as it can be bought in bulk and stored for longer periods of time
It’s easy to see then why some might choose aseptic purees over buying fresh fruit and vegetables, depending on their purpose, of course.
What is aseptic puree used for?
We’ve skated over the fact that aseptic puree is used a lot in the food industry and that it has a number of uses – but what are these?
Well, these purees are used a lot in baking and are therefore very popular with large bakeries or companies that manufacture huge amounts of baked goods. For example, the retained flavours can be used in carrot cake, banana loaves, etc., without having to buy fresh fruit and hope it lasts more than a couple of days.
The fact that it is already pureed also takes out a lot of the hard work for the manufacturer!
This type of product is also understandably popular when it comes to producing baby food. After all, it’s tasty, healthy and can be bought in bulk to produce huge amounts at once. It is also used in the beverage industry, particularly for fruit smoothies or health drinks.
Finally, it can also be used in a range of products as a substitute for sugar. This allows manufacturers to create healthier products, as it still has a sweet taste but has a much higher nutritional value and far fewer calories than sugar.