A deep fryer or otherwise known as Deep Fat Fryer in some countries is one of the most common equipment in the commercial kitchen. And we can understand why. Everyone loves a crispy chicken or hot fries – making the deep fryer common equipment seen in the kitchen.
Not to be confused with pressure fryers or vacuum fryers, deep-frying involves fully immersing food in hot oil. It is an extremely fast cooking method, and, despite the use of liquid oil, is best classified as a dry cooking method because it does not involve liquid water. With a deep fat fryer, deep-frying is reasonably safe, but hot cooking oil is intrinsically dangerous, and one should be very careful so as to avoid fires and/or severe burns.
So which fryer would suit you best? With a huge variety available in the market – it’s most obvious difference is whether it is a tabletop unit or a freestanding unit. But if you look into it – there are a few variations and its categorization actually refers to the sediment zone.
Sediment zone refers to the area where cracklings, breadings or small pieces of food collect during the frying cycle. It is also referred to as the “cold zone” as the temperature in this section is not as hot as the cooking zone.[hr]
• There is the open-pot fryers –
which has the heating element exposed which works well for lightly breaded food
• Then the tube type fryers –
for heavily battered food
• And lastly flat bottom fryers –
for specialty food or liquid battered cooking[hr]
Selecting a fryer that allows an optional filtration process would ensure the best food flavor while minimizing the waste of the oil that you use. There are brands that comes with a specialized filtration unit that would help keep costs low for restaurants that has an extensive menu of fried items.
Having a fryer that has a computerized control and safety controls is also something you should consider. With these units – it helps to minimise necessary monitoring and allows you to better utilize staff and time in the kitchen to do other processes.
Our focus this issue would be on the floor standing version. The variety in the market is endless – with option to be operated via electric or gas.
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CHEF RAYMOND
“Deep fr yers malfunctioning or being used inappropriately is a serious fire risk. Make sure the fryers include a safety cutout in case of overheating and service regularly.”
CHEF DARREN
Deep fryers, although significantly necessary are huge resource drainers (gas/electricty and oil) for any commercial kitchen. Don’t fit your kitchen with a huge unit just because “every kitchen must have one”. Consider your operations, how many menu items require deep frying, the frequency of it appearing on your menu and if you can predict its popularity as well. If you are convinced that an investment into a deep fryer will be paid off by it’s usage, then it makes business sense to begin shopping for one.
CHEF ENZO
Pick a fryer that has a quick heat up and recovery time or those with dual wells with separate temperature control. You would then be heating the quantity you need which makes sense for an ala car te service restaurant, rather than heating up a big well for 1 serving. Having a dual well would also help in maintaining quality as your staff is able to differentiate the time left to fry.
