Pizza is certainly one of the world’s most beloved foods. Your restaurant might specialize in thick, thin, stuffed or deep dish varieties—no matter how you serve your pie, you need the right commercial pizza supplies. When it comes time to select your pizza cooking supplies, you will find a plethora of pizza pans, pizza screens and pizza cooking accessories. The Restaurant Guru is here to help you decide which kitchen equipment suits your pizza recipe.

Pizza pans are normally available in sizes ranging from 10″ diameter to an 18″ diameter. A good rule of thumb is that a 14″ pie generally feeds two or three customers. Once you’ve decided the size of pies you’re interested in baking, you must decide which pizza pans will suit your baking style. Serv-U offers a range of 1” deep and 2” deep dish pizza pans. If you prefer a crispier crust, your kitchen needs nibbed pizza equipment. These pizza pans have raised nibs that are approximately 5/8” diameter and raise the pizza about 1/8” above the surface of the pan.  Raising the pizza off the surface allows moisture to escape, resulting in a fresher, crispier pizza. Store your full size pans in a multi-shelf pan rack for easy access.

If you are looking for pizza equipment that is lighter weight and easier to handle, pizza screens are an excellent option. Pizza screens are constructed of a mesh material that allows for more airflow.  This design makes them ideal for baking calzones and garlic bread. Pizza screens can easily be stacked in a pizza screen rack.

Whether you are using a shallow or deep dish pizza pan, be sure to stock your kitchen with an appropriate pan gripper. The pizza pan gripper is a necessary tool for grasping deep dish or shallow pizza pans. A self locking design means that squeezing is not necessary. The pan load activates the clamping action of your pizza pan gripper.

Buying a walk-in cooler for your business is a big decision. Don’t let all the calculations and considerations put a “chill” on the process! From their compressors and doors to their shapes and sizes, walk-in coolers are extremely complex pieces of restaurant equipment. The Restaurant Guru blog is here to help with a list of the main factors to consider when purchasing a walk-in freezer.

How much storage space is needed? Walk-in coolers come in standard or custom sizes. Sizes range from as small as 4’x5’ to walk-in units that are room-sized. In figuring capacity, on average, 1-cubic foot of open storage area will accommodate about 28 pounds of solid food. Shelving is an integral part of walk-in refrigeration storage systems. Welded wire shelving with a polymer coating is generally the best choice for walk-ins, allowing cold air to circulate around food products. Keep shelves at least 6" off the floor for ease of cleaning and low enough to prevent the food from touching the ceiling. Mobile cabinets or storage racks provide alternatives to fixed wire shelving.

Once you have space needs figured out, it’s time to think about how you will maintain the chill within your walk-in cooler. Holding foods in a safely chilled or frozen state to avoid cross contamination and keeping products at correct temperatures are a walk-in cooler’s primary food safety functions. Temperature monitoring and recording can help operators comply with HACCP guidelines, and can be especially useful in storage of pre-made foods. Designate separate sections of a walk-in cooler for raw and ready-to-eat products to minimize threat of cross-contamination. Place at least one accurate thermometer in the warmest part of the walk-in freezer to measure the air temperature. It is best to have several placed throughout the unit.

Walk-in accessories will keep your restaurant equipment at peak performance. An air-circulation system that allows a walk-in to draw in cold outside air when the exterior temperature is colder than the interior box temperature is available for your restaurant equipment. An air door or vinyl curtain strips may be mounted above walk-in entrances to make sure proper temperatures are maintained, as well as to protect units from insect infestation.

Ensure that your floors and ceilings are in the right condition for proper load bearing and ventilation and you are ready to install a walk-in cooler!

Last week, the Restaurant Guru blog addressed fryer oil and its important role in your commercial fryer. Whether your operation uses a single fryer, double fryer, or counter top fryer, all restaurant fryers have the same maintenance needs. You can maximize service life with regular and thorough cleaning. There are tasks to be performed on an hourly, daily and weekly basis in order to keep your commercial fryer producing golden fries, poppers and onion rings.

Hourly: Battered and spiced foods may taste delicious when fried, but they can leave behind sediment in your fry baskets. When you notice sediment particles floating, probably on an hourly basis, depending on the frequency of operation, you should use a fryer skimmer to remove the particles. Simply skim the floating debris off the surface of the fryer oil to prevent it from degrading your oil. Crumb scoops are another option for a deep fryer.

Daily: Filtering is another key to removing sediment. Some fryers have built-in filtration systems. Others require portable fryer filtration systems which remove the oil from the fryer, automatically filters it, and pumps clean oil back in. With the rising costs of oil, filtering is a great option that can save costs for your restaurant. Filters should be changed regularly for optimum effectiveness. Oil purifiers can also be added to your fryer to maintain food quality, extend oil life, and reduce oil costs by up to 50 percent.

Weekly: Boiling out your commercial fryer is the best way to eliminate acidic or caustic oil buildup on the metal. Commercial fryer detergents should be added to the water before boiling to help loosen deposits. After boiling the fryer, add a small amount of vinegar to your rinse to neutralize any soap residue. Dry the frypot thoroughly to avoid contaminating your fryer oil!