Thanks to the special MicVac valve distributed by Lazzari, the ingredients of a ready meal are cooked inside the package while keeping their taste, texture and nutritional value.   After being heat-sealed with a flexible film onto which this special valve is applied, the tray – filled with raw food ingredients – is sent through a microwave tunnel. During the cooking process, the valve opens to release internal pressure created as the food releases steam and to prevent the package from bursting. The shape of tray and tunnel are designed to guarantee even cooking and uniform distribution of the heat. At the exit from the tunnel, the trays enter a spiral cooler that reduces the temperature to 4-8°C, thus causing internal vacuum pressure to build. At this point, there is the risk that the trays curve upward, but their special design prevents it. The resulting final product is a vacuum-packed fresh meal without preservatives providing a refrigerated shelf-life of at least four weeks at 4-8°C. The short thermal treatment allowed by microwaves is ideal for cooking containing ingredients such as meat, fish, vegetables, pasta and rice.