Why It's Recommended to Use a Food Thermometer in Restaurants
Introduction
Simply put, a food thermometer is a gadget used to measure the temperature of food. Sounds basic enough, however, many even in the professional food industry fail to ensure that the dishes they are preparing and serving to their clientele are utilizing this essential cooking tool.
If you pay close attention to most recipes, you will notice that temperature ranges play a key role in how well your meal will be prepared. Although taste is obviously an important factor in cooking, there are other immensely important reasons why your kitchen should have only the best food thermometer in their kitchen.
The most prevalent use of food thermometers is to measure if food has met both the desired temperature and the safest temperature for consumption. For example, some meals such as baked bread and meat need to have a certain internal temperature. It is done to eliminate any pathogens that may be in the food. This calls for the need for one to invest in a food thermometer because this gadget measures the internal temperature of food.
This article will provide an ample amount of data in regard to the importance of maintaining food quality standards, as well as the best equipment on the market that will allow you to maintain these standards.
Understanding the Why
Why do you need to use a food thermometer in the kitchen? Even the most skilled of chefs may ponder this. One of the key requirements of being an excellent chef is to be equipped with the best cooking essentials at all times.
A proper food thermometer is one of the essential equipment that should not lack in your kitchen. The need for one is emphasized more in restaurants because the inventory needs to be regularly monitored for the following reasons .
Adhere to Food Safety Regulations
Restaurants are legally required to comply with the food regulations in the respective locations where they operate. These regulations are set forth by HACCP, Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point.
Restaurants need to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the quality of their food remains upheld, especially considering that these dishes will be distributed to the public. Temperature maintenance in the kitchen is one of the salient requirements to take heed of. This way you will work comfortably without clashing with authorities.
Maintain the Quality of Food Prepared
The quality of the meal prepared is determined by two salient factors or conditions. The first one is the state of ingredients before the meal is prepared. The second determining factor is the cooking process itself. The two requirements both necessitate that the temperature range is kept at favorable conditions.
The state of ingredients is monitored the moment they are purchased. Each of these ingredients is stored in a favorable kitchen temperature. This is meant to ascertain that these perishable ingredients remain fresh until the moment of preparation.
The preparation of your meal also requires following the necessary temperature range. The internal temperature of the meal prepared indicates whether it is the required amount to achieve the optimal state of readiness required. This is especially the case for meat, bread, and some dairy products such as ice cream.
Inventory Management
Restaurants spend a significant amount of resources in inventory. It is common information that food is highly perishable. The safety of ingredients is assured by storing them at the optimal temperature, which differs depending on the nature of ingredient in context. Therefore, you can easily monitor the safety of your ingredients. This way, your profitability will remain safeguarded.
Now that you know the imperative role food thermometers play, let's dive into the utilities offered by food thermometers.
Exploring Your Options
I bet you are now wondering about the types of thermometers required in the kitchen. The truth is that there are different types of food thermometers that are used for the different processes done in the kitchen. Here are the different types.
Dial Oven-Safe (Bimetal)
This type of food thermometer is used in casseroles, roasts, and soups as well. This type of food thermometer can remain in food while it's cooking.
Digital Instant-Read (Thermistor)
The thermistor is best suited to measure temperature in thin & thick foods. However, it has a delicate make. Therefore, it cannot remain in food while it is cooking.
Dial Instant-Read (Bimetal)
This food thermometer can be used to measure the doneness of meals such as casseroles, roasts, and soups. The temperature is averaged along the surface of the probe, from tip to 2-3" up the stem. This one is not designed to remain in food while it is cooking.
Thermocouple
This thermometer is best suited for measuring temperatures of thick and thin foods. Unfortunately, you have to remain assertive and remove it because it is not designed to remain in food while it's cooking. This food thermometer is more costly and may be difficult for consumers to find in stores .
Oven Probe with Cord
This food thermometer can be used in most foods. Additionally, it can also be used outside the oven. This thermometer is designed to remain in the food while it is cooking in the oven or in a covered pot. The base unit sits on the stovetop or counter.
What Food Safety Software Can Do for Your Business
I bet we can all agree that technology has revolutionized so many facets of the lives we lead. Proper food storage methods have also been revolutionized thanks to technological advancement. One of such applications is the Zip HACCP food safety software.
Zip HACCP has changed the narrative of contemporary temperature control in the kitchen. It deals with maintaining the optimal temperature for all the necessary kitchen equipment, and it is a cloud-based user platform used to make sure that the quality of your inventory is kept safe.
This software has some perks such as automatic relay information in real-time, among others. Here are some of the top features.
Improves the Accountability of Employees
Zip HACCP smoothens the operations of checklists whether in the store or not. It helps to allocate your restaurant's employees to their respective tasks and checklists.
This makes it easy for people to be aware of what needs to be prepared and the respective time.
The product provides management proof of evidence to ensure every employee is accountable for his or her actions.
It is an efficient tool to pick out and separate the hardworking employees from those who are not. This software offers an end to use of a pen or pencil to mark a checklist ever in the future because of the auditing utilities it provides.
Complies to Food Safety Standards
When cooking, if the temperatures are maintained at optimum levels then the food will remain safe for consumption. Zip HACCP makes it certain that you prepare and keep your food at the required temperatures.
This amazing software is integrated with a Bluetooth temperature probe. This way, your staff can take the necessary remedial action every moment the temperatures surpass the recommended range. Your restaurant's workers will be informed in every passing moment about the state of affairs. It leaves no chance for error. Zip HACCP will help protect your consumer pool and your brand reputation.
Simple to Use
Zip HACCP will aid you to effectively standardize task execution within your restaurant. This software has small elaborations about the context of tasks to give your employees, the best way to guide employees to perform, and the best practices used in such a line of business. This small elaboration meant to guide task execution has a remedial action, as well.
Therefore, if a worker makes an error in task execution the software recommends a remedial action to remedy the employee. This makes it certain that the quality of the end product is maintained by using the best practices available in the restaurant industry. All checklists have a due time and it alerts management of the upcoming tasks. Your management will be on par with all that needs to be achieved in a timely manner.
More Key Features
User-Friendly Bluetooth Enabled Probe
Zip HACCP food safety software will give you and the rest of your restaurant staff accurate temperature readings. This probe is able to instantly link with the mobile application. This application can be used on any enabled device. It requires no setups for the installation process. This Bluetooth proper relays live data of all the readings made. This invention saves up a significant amount of time to conduct line checks absolute precision.
Offer Improved Report Records
Zip HACCP food safety software gives reports of insight that ubiquitously accessible from any digital gadget. The types of report that these food safety offers are wide. It ranges from assessing the nitty-gritty of everyday tasks to generalized operations status of the business/restaurant in context.
These are known as trend reports. Trend reports can show the most imperative unit of measurement to run your business. Your restaurant's management can use this software to identify tasks that have faults and take up the necessary remedial actions to prevent a redundancy from occurring.
Make a List of the Most Critical Tasks
Every business/restaurant has a list of the most critical tasks. Some of these tasks are repetitive in the norm of operations and hence need to be paid special attention to. Zip HACCP will assist you in overlooking the most salient tasks in your restaurant's operations.
Therefore, every instance that a critical task has failed to be executed as required then your management will be informed in a timely manner.
Ubiquitous Access
Zip HACCP is a mobile-based application that is accessible via the internet network. This enables your management team to easily access from afar. Time and distance are no longer constraints to how you run your business. With Zip HACCP, you get the flexibility to manage every aspect of your restaurant whenever, wherever. This is especially important when you expand and have to keep tabs on franchise locations or other branches.
Historically, running a restaurant has been one of the most daunting tasks because of the many intertwined aspects one has to manage. One bad review can nullify all the positive reviews you have received over the years, which is why it is imperative that you equip yourself with all of the tools and resources to allow your business to succeed.
How to Keep Food Out of the Danger Zone
The 7 Principles of HACCP Explained
HACCP Standards and Its Role in the Restaurant Industry
