Quick freeze in brine solultion vs blast freezing seafood??

[lhwang78]

I have a seafood company and am about to get into freezing fish and crabs for export. I'm torn between going with quick freezing in a salt brine solution (i've been offered a GREAT deal) and blast freezing. I want great quality. I've heard that quick freezing in tanks of brine solution is a quick and easy process. But then I see most fisheries using blast freezing, which takes a lot longer. Are there any quality differences? Does quick freezing in brine make a mushy product when thawed? I If quick freezing in brine is so great, why don't more people use it? Any input would be greatly, greatly appreciated!

[smpsmp45]

Even one of our customers was in for such a freezer. The reason was same- great deal. later he changed his mind & shifted to IQF. I think the product acceptance of such freezing ( you do get flavored shrimps as well) is not much in the market. I could be wrong in this assumption.

[Vytux123]

Hello, Ihwang78,
By my opinion disadvantages in brine system:
1) You are very dependabale on brine properties (freezing point).
2) It is not so flexible as dx system.
3) The costs of this system must be notedly higher.
4) More complex maintenace of system.
5) Lower COP of complete system.
Advantages:
6) Tuning of the system usually is very complicated.
1) Lower quantity of primary refrigerant.

The best solution in blast freezing is flooded system. :)

[lhwang78]

Thanks for the replies....how about the quality of the product in brine solution freezing? Will the meat still be good quality?

[CHIEF DELPAC]

We use IQF We cannot reach the minimum core temperature of -18C. using brine freezing The product frozen in brine will have an increase in salt content

[Peter_1]

Or a nitrogen tunnel

[elmdas]

Peter 1, your tag line is spot-on, but here goes anyway.......

All other factors aside, wouldn't that brine rinse be a good antiseptic to kill surface organisms? Why not go a step farther and call it a 'flash marinade'. That would turn a necessary cost (the freezing) into a marketing tool. Sure, your 'flash marinade' is based on mostly brine, but would a little vinegar affect the temperature much? The acidity might also be good for antiseptic qualities. Or, a triple dip......white wine, then vinegar, then the brine freezing.

Yea, yea, yea, it's either a stupid idea or pure genius. Smart businesspeople can turn lemons into lemonade.....Hey, lemonade! That's a heck of a good ingredient for a marinade.
John B.

[Scramjetman]

Product freezing time would have to be better in a brine due to high conduction coefficient so product would spend a lot less time in refrigeration than in a blast tunnel. Throughput would be faster provided the plant can keep up with the load.

The product quality question is a good one. Does the brine affect the thawed quality of the product?

Get the supplier to take you to a plant he's already installed and buy some product, thaw it and check it.

A hybrid system may have the highest throughput if the quality is ok. Brine freeze to -18 then blast tunnel the remainder to the desired temperature. I can't see why both can't be run from the same plant with appropriate refrigeration controls for the different loads.

Just thinking left field here. ;)

[Peter_1]

What about contamination of the water when you constantly submerged fresh food in it?

[smpsmp45]

What I have seen is that Only tuna is done with brine solutions. Other fish are typically blast freeze frozen.
It has something to do with the final value in the market as well.