Restaurant Practices - Equipment in a Professional Kitchen

>>> How to Keep Safe Food Handling in Your Restaurant.

Food handling statistics show that over half of foodborne disease outbreaks are related to restaurants as opposed to food consumed in the home or at school. In many cases, the source of the disease-causing pathogen is a food service worker that has been suffering with illness caused by foodborne bacteria or viruses. The hands that are doing the food handling are often the vehicle that transmits the bacteria and viruses from the sick worker to the food. When this contamination involves foods that are ready-to-eat, a foodborne illness outbreak can occur.

Section 3-301.11 of the 2005 FDA Food Handling Code prohibits bare hand food handling with ready-to-eat food, and requires the use of suitable utensils. Suitable utensils can include items such as deli tissue, spatulas, tongs and single-use gloves. The Food Handling Code further recommends that bare hand contact with other foods that are not ready-to-eat should also be minimized.

Our focus will be on the use of gloves for the purpose of minimizing bare hand contact with all foods. Use the following key points to educate your team members about the importance of wearing gloves and how to use them correctly.

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO WEAR GLOVES? * Wearing gloves is never a substitute for proper hand washing, but gloves do provide an additional barrier between the hands of the wearer and the food they are handling. When used properly and in conjunction with hand washing, gloves help to provide maximum safety.

* In today's environment it seems that we are hearing of more and more incidents of foodborne illness outbreaks and product recalls. Your customer is more educated about food handling safety than ever before. Studies have shown that up to 77% of consumers believe that hand washing alone is not enough and would select a restaurant using gloves over one that did not. Gloves get noticed!

WHICH GLOVES SHOULD WE USE? There are many different types of disposable food contact gloves available. Getting the right glove for the task is important because you want the gloves you choose to stand up to the job.

* The gloves you select should be task-specific. Take into consideration the length of time the gloves will need to be worn to complete the task, the temperature of the environment and proximity to heat sources, and the types of food that will be in contact with the gloves. * Here are some brief descriptions of the different glove types mentioned above: * o Poly: Loose-fitting gloves for light-duty tasks that require changing gloves often. o Vinyl: More durable, closer-fitting gloves for food processing and medium-duty tasks requiring good dexterity and/or sensitivity; latex-free and appropriate for use near heat sources. o Synthetic: Form-fitting gloves for tasks requiring flexibility and dexterity. Use for delicate work requiring fingertip sensitivity. Feels and acts like latex. Ideal for latex sensitive workers. o Latex: Ultra-formfitting gloves for tasks requiring ultimate dexterity. Use for delicate work requiring fingertip sensitivity. o Nitrile: Form-fitting gloves for tasks requiring good puncture resistance and a high level of dexterity.

HOW DO WE USE GLOVES SAFELY? * Getting The Right Fit - Select the right size, from small to extra large. Too big and the gloves will slip and slide on the hand which decreases dexterity and can be a safety hazard. Too small and the glove will more easily tear and break. A properly fitted glove will be more comfortable, which means that team members will wear them readily. We recommend that you provide gloves of various types and sizes as needed to accommodate everyone on the team.

* Avoid Cross Contamination - Change gloves and wash hands between handling raw meats and poultry and handling ready-to-eat foods. Change gloves and wash hands when you change your activity (from making sandwiches to making change), or whenever you leave your workstation. Change gloves and wash hands any time a glove tears or becomes worn. Always wear gloves over a bandage on the fingers or hands. To remove disposable gloves correctly, grasp at the cuff and peel them off inside-out.

HOW DO WE MOTIVATE THE TEAM TO WEAR AND USE GLOVES CORRECTLY? * Do your team members understand the link between hands and the transmission of foodborne illness bacteria and viruses? Make sure that they do. * Instruct your team members on which tasks require gloves and set the expectation that gloves will always be used for those tasks. * Demonstrate how to properly wear and remove gloves and always insist on thorough hand washing before donning gloves and between glove changes. * Do not allow gloves to be stored at every work station or on every prep table. Provide the gloves ONLY at the hand sink locations. Getting your team members to the hand sinks will encourage more frequent hand washing.

REMEMBER, FOOD SAFETY IS IN YOUR HANDS!

>>> How to Cook Whole Chicken in a Barbecue Oven. 

So how do you cook whole chicken in a barbecue oven? Is it any different than cooking it in a traditional convection oven? Sure is. And we're going to share a few tips with you to make sure your chicken barbecues up just right!

Whole chickens are used a lot in commercial environments to cook for restaurants, company picnics and other large events where they're cooked in much larger ovens that will handle 20 to 40 chickens at one time.

For this article, I'll focus on how to cook whole chicken on a smaller scale, your barbecue oven, one chicken at a time.

1.Don't undercook or overcook chicken. It usually takes about 2-1/2 to 3 hours to barbecue and must be checked off and on to make sure it is not getting cooked too much, which will burn your chicken, but you don't want it undercooked either.

2.Keep your grill at low temperatures, about 230 to 250 degrees. The secret to most great barbecued chicken, one with moist, tender meat and smoky skin is to keep your grill at low temperatures and cook slowly. Don't think that the chicken is not cooking or getting done quick enough. Give it time and you will be happy with it at the end by just taking your time. Be patient and the end results will be very tasty.

3.Spice rub before you put chicken on the barbecue. Rubbing the chicken with spice rub is a great idea in the beginning will give it great taste at the end.

4.Add sauces at the end. Don't add any sauces until near the end of the barbecue. When the chicken is almost done, start applying the sauce. The sauce only needs about five minutes to cook on the chicken. Remove the chicken with tongs when you start seeing any signs of charring.

To bring this all together and make things work correctly on how to cook whole chicken, it takes patience and close attention to what you are doing in order to have your meal of chicken come out correctly and enjoy it after putting the time into barbecuing chicken. Add any vegetables to the chicken and make it a very healthy meal.

>>> Usages of Barbecue Equipment. 

People from all parts of the world cannot deny the aroma and taste of barbecue. Whether cooked on a charcoal grill, a wood burning barbecue smoker, or a rotisserie equipment, everyone enjoys this traditional southern cooking. And since there are plenty of techniques and equipment used to cook barbecue, it is vital that one chooses the best method and equipment to use in order to prepare and serve the best barbecue among the rest. Here is a guide on the different kinds and uses of barbecue equipment.

In deciding which type or size of barbecue equipment to buy or use, consider the demand you have and its working capacity. Generally, you may want to decide first whether to purchase a batch unit or a continuous unit.

Batch cookers: Batch rotisseries have timers and thermostatic controls that turn temperature to warmer. It features programmable controls with 12 programs, automatic cook, and hold options. In this type of barbecue equipment, you can only place and cook products by batch and must wait until a batch is cooked before placing the next. Most batch cookers can cook a batch of 25-56 chickens in an hour, depending on the cooking model's size. However, note that you cannot combine raw products and semi-cooked products on a batch unit because of susceptibility to salmonella contamination.

Continuous Cookers: These are used for rotisserie requiring large production. Most continuous cookers have a stainless steel interior and exterior with hinged or sliding door options. The interior can be lit with flood lamps to illuminate the product. The rotating spit ensures that the product is moist and tender, and evenly cooked and basted. This is believed to be the most reliable barbecue equipment to deliver fresh and evenly cooked product. A continuous unit has a bigger space that allows you to place raw products on the bottom for it not to contaminate the cooked spit on the top. This large variety of grill may demand greater investment as they are relatively expensive.

Batch and continuous cookers may be further classified into some recent rotisserie cookware innovations. Hickory, being a reputable and reliable brand offers vertical rotisseries that can be used for batch or continuous cooking.

Churrasco: One of the newest methods of rotisserie cooking is the use of this equipment - flat-ridged knife spits that grills products directly on top of a char-grill. Churrasco is a rotisserie cooking equipment with two levels designed for bottom and top cooking. The bottom part is used for quick cooking while the top part is for cooking large-sized products or for keeping cooked products warm. There will be no need to do manual rotation of chicken and meat as this automated barbecue equipment makes the cooking process easier. Products like chicken and marinated meat are grilled directly on top of a char grill. Churrasco is perceived to be a versatile cooking equipment too as it can accept any type of charcoal, wood fuel, or lava rock used to accentuate flavorful cooking. The spit plates can also be removed so you can use the equipment as a traditional char-grill.

Special cookers: Cookers from this category have pace-saving design so you can conveniently place one on a countertop or mount on a wall. The Hickory 1.9 Rotisserie, for example, is a compact and versatile countertop oven that assures maximum cooking availability with its 9 individual motors that drive 9 separate spits. Dual convection fans circulate the heated air to assure you of even and efficient cooking. This barbecue equipment features dual glass enclosure for full visibility from all three sides. This is perhaps an ideal special cooker for smaller retail outlets who wish to include grilled chicken on their current menu.

Along with the functionality, you may also want to consider one that is not too difficult to handle and fits your space. While there are specific barbecue equipment for certain types of barbecue cooking, it is still important that you consider a unit that you are comfortable using. It is imperative that you know how the equipment works and how it can help you serve a delicious barbecue.

>>> Commercial Freezer Usage. 

There are many models of freezers, and each model falls into general categories. Each category addresses a popular need. Freezers are used to keep things frozen, but there are different levels of freezing. Some things should be kept at higher or lower temperatures, depending on several factors including how long it will be frozen. Be sure to research any freezer before you buy it, you should make sure you are getting a freezer that will suit your needs, and fit your kitchen.

Space savers with sliding doors, are typically compact units designed to save space and keep cold. Most space saver freezers include sliding glass doors that close automatically, and an illuminated display. Space savers are used to keep things just barely frozen, or at freezing temperature without actually freezing them. A handy use for space savers would be to keep drinks freezing gold, or general groceries that you want to save.

Chest freezers are for deep freezing. They are colder, and most use an environmentally friendly coolant called R-134a. This type of freezer comes in handy when you need to store something at very low temperatures for extended periods of time, for instance if you wanted to keep some meat all winter long. People tend to use these to store meat or other food so they don't have to go to the store as often.

There are even freezers designed to go under counters and such. The thought behind these freezers was to make use of a previously wasted space under counters where you couldn't put many things. The main use for these is to use the space under your counter for something constructive, and also provides the convenience of reaching under a counter to get something. These come in handy by giving you somewhere to store frozen goods you'll be using without thawing them out until you are ready.

Some freezers are built to act as counter tops. They even have a cutting board and places for pans. There are many uses for such freezers. You can use them as a table to prepare food, and you can serve food on them, or it can replace a counter in your kitchen.

Always make sure your freezer is using an environmentally friendly refrigerant, such as R-134a, and that it's set to the desired setting so you don't waste electricity. A lot of freezers have little or no plumbing. This allows them to be moved or replaced easily. Another important feature is the widespread integration of refrigerators and freezers. Some units have a refrigerator on one side and a freezer on the other. This saves on the electricity bill, allows for extra features like the ice machines, and is very convenient.

>>> Using Pizza and Sandwich Preparation Tables. 

When it comes to preparing food, you'll find that the cutting probably cannot be done on your standard table. There are quite a few reasons for this, one of them being the fact that you don't want to end up cutting straight through a card table while you are preparing food. The other reason is that you need the table to be easy enough to clean. You will likely be doing some pretty nasty things at this table and you want to be able to wipe it off quickly with a cloth or whatever it is you use to clean with, and you are going to find that a standard cloth just doesn't seem to cut it in this case.

For this purpose you will probably want to make sure that the pizza preparation tables that you use are composed of stainless steel. Stainless steel is very easy to clean, and if you get a specialized table you will find that it may be equipped with some things that you didn't expect. One thing that a table of this nature could have is a way to clean it, meaning that it could have raised areas around the edges so that you won't have to worry about flooding the entire kitchen if something goes wrong at a specific table and you need to do a little cleanup.

Some of the pizza and sandwich preparation tables that are currently sold by Toy-Rey are really nice and affordable. You will find a lot of helpful information as well as products on their site, so make sure that you check them out as soon as you can, because this is one company that you'll definitely want to give a chance to when you see the quality of their products.

Quality is very important, particularly in a table of this type. Think about it, if you go for something that is cheaply made then you are going to run into all sorts of problems. For one thing you might not be able to clean it in the way you want, and even though the preparation table might still be okay for cutting sandwiches, customers may actually see the table and the mess that has been made on it, and they may decide to take their business elsewhere. Of course you could opt to hide your preparation table, but a lot of the time customers prefer to be able to see the food as it is being prepared.

It doesn't hurt to cut costs sometimes, but this is one thing that you'll want to go all out on simply because it is pivotal to the success or failure of your food establishment. Good pizza preparation tables will be made of a metal that is easy to clean, and may even have attachments and areas for plumbing to be added so that you can clean your table with easy, without needing to go the sink every time you need something cleaned.

Make sure that you pick the right preparation table, and make sure that you pay the right price for it. There are some imitators out there, and you'll want to make sure that you rise above the competition. Good luck finding that perfect table.

>>> Cleaning of Food Service Equipment.

The food industry can be exciting, the bustling crowds of people, and cooking, the drinks, and then you get to the end of the day, and there's the cleanup. Not exactly your cup of tea that's for sure, but it has to be done. The entire restaurant, floors included must be spotless, not only for sanitation purposes, but you never know when that pesky health inspector is going to pay a visit! Here are some basic tips on cleaning a few of the more common pieces of equipment in your kitchen.

Fryers:
French fryers, Donut fryers, Chick and fish fryers, they all fall into this category, and they all must be cleaned. For those who aren't familiar with them, a French fryer is essentially a large cabinet that is filled with grease, heated up, and used to cook French fries by submerging them in the boiling hot liquid for a period of time. This produces some mighty fine French fries, along with a mighty fine mess to clean at the end of the day. The way you go about doing this, is by simply switching the machine off, draining the grease, and when the machine has cooled off, you can spray it down, or wash it off with soap and water. The fry baskets need to be cleaned as well, you can clean them in your sink, and make sure everything is disinfected. Once that's done, you'll be ready to fry another day!

Pots and Pans:
Skillets, Sauce Pans, Spatulas, and all other lovely utensils are all part of a healthy kitchen, and as such they too need to be cleaned. Fortunately, these are fairly easy since you just have to submerge them in a sink full of soapy water, and wipe them off. Make sure they're free of any residue or piece of food, and if you have an industrial dishwasher, it just became about ten times easier! Remember, a clean spatula is a happy spatula!

The Stove
It's an ominous piece of machinery sitting there on your production line looking all smooth and shiny, that is until you go to use it. By the end of the day, it'll be covered in grease, chunks of meat, and marks where people have tried to wipe it off all day. The only way you can really wipe it off, is to actually power it down. They do cool off fairly fast, but it's important to note that normally one side of the stove is hotter than the other, which is to help in cooking food that requires a hotter temperature. Wipe your stove down with a wet rag, using soap and water, and make sure you collect the grease, and any other discarded food that might be near it.

Deli Slicers:
If you work in a deli, then you probably have a meat slicer. Chances are you use that meat slicer, meaning there's an even higher chance it needs to be cleaned. To do this, put on a pair of safety gloves, preferably ones that won't be penetrated by the blade, because believe me, that thing is sharp, then you remove any large chunks of meat that are in the way of the blade. For example, if there is an entire ham in there, take it out. You should have received a manual from the manufacture of the device, regarding safe detergents to use on it, and you should have a solvent mix for it somewhere, so use that to clean all the parts that come into contact with food, and thoroughly clean any removable parts. Remember to clean it every single day, and your slicer will thank you for it.

About the Author: Jim Musselman owns K & J Deli Cases, a food service equipment distribution company. Jim's company sells barbecue equipment, deli cases, coolers and restaurant equipment worldwide through his distributorship.   "We specialize in almost all of the necessary equipment you'll need to run your food service business smoothly, from deli cases and coolers to culinary supplies. Our items are specially made for the end user and priced at a very low price to take the burden off spending lots of money that can otherwise be spent in other areas of your business."