If you are running a food-related or catering business, then you can’t forget to have good quality commercial refrigeration equipment’s. Certainly, commercial fridges, freezers, blast chillers are essential in order to store food, drinks and beverages at the correct temperature and avoid contamination or prevent the food from spoiling. Here, in this article, I’ve compiled some basic reasons of having a blast chiller for cooked food.
Maintaining food quality
Cooked food quickly loses many of their appealing characteristics. It is due to natural bacterial growth during the cooling process. If you want to maintain food quality, it is important to reduce any form of food deterioration by taking control of time, humidity and temperature. A right Blast Chiller / Freezer will help you to do this. With the help of appropriate chilling method, taste and appearance are maintained while vitamins and natural goodness are preserved along with food texture, flavor, color, nutrients and aroma.
Prevent food shrinkage
Food can quickly reduce in size and weight due to the loss of moisture. It entirely depends upon the food type, humidity, ambient temperature and timescales. With the help of advanced chilling technology a Blast Chiller can significantly reduce the level of dehydration of products. It prevents the natural evaporation that takes place when food is left to cool in a normal environment.
You can avoid regular moisture loss through evaporation during slow cooling procedures.
Related: Why Blast Chillers are Essential for Your Commercial Kitchen
Increase menu choice and service
In a restaurant or catering business, a more extensive menu can easily be offered by preparing food ahead of busy periods and regenerating food as requested. Kitchen resources, equipment and staff can be used at less busy periods to provide a wider choice of menu options.
Blast chillers will naturally improve the service as the kitchen team will have more time to focus on consistently providing a full menu along with carefully presented dishes.
Achieve Food Safety Standards
Usually a blast chiller will reduce the temperature of cooked food temperature from +70°C down to +3°C in 90 minutes. A small blast chiller will make sure food items are handled in line with Government Food Standards Agency regulations. It also ensures full compliance with Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) standards.
The HACCP system is designed to evaluate the potential risks that might affect food safety at each production stage. Using a blast chiller guarantees a high level of safety while supporting a uniform standard.
Improve shelf life
Blast chillers allow chefs and producers to extend the shelf life of food products. These chillers helps in lowering down the food temperature at which harmful bacteria grows. This can considerably improve availability and sales, whilst reducing food waste.
Gain peace of mind
As per the government set standards, all cooked food that will not be consumed right away (normally within 2 hours), must be cooled as quickly as possible to reduce the growth of harmful bacteria.
With the help of a blast chiller, you can lower down the temperature of cooked food products upto +3°C where it can be safely stored in a refrigerator without affecting the performance of the refrigeration equipment and the condition of other food stuffs held in the cabinet or cheap modular cold room.
Save time and money
Once bought and used properly, a Blast Chiller quickly becomes an essential piece of the kitchen or production equipment. It enables the efficient use of resources, increase the scale of purchasing ingredients and larger batch production.
Blast Chillers are actually designed to cut the temperature of food quickly. They are not known for low energy consumption. But, you can save energy by using cooking or baking equipment to full capacity, then chilling and storing food products accordingly.
