There are three words to describe what happens behind the curtains of a great restaurant: perfectly choreographed chaos. In this quick-paced environment, it's essential that everyone knows what they are supposed to do and are able to perform well under pressure. A good chef and his crew know how to move fast while they mix different cooking techniques to prepare amazing dishes. There are many cooking techniques out there, some of them common, others less common, but all of them give delicious results when used correctly.
Grilling
Grilling involves cooking the food on a metallic rack, on top of a fire, to allow it to gain a crispy crust with a distinctive charred flavour, while the inside of the food remains juicy. Grilling is a popular cooking technique because it's among the healthiest cooking methods out there. The fat drips off the grill, while vegetables and meats preserve most of their vitamins and minerals, making them more valuable from a nutritious point of view.
Establishments which use this cooking technique are usually praised in reviews so investing in a high-quality grill like the ones from Synergy Grill is essential for your restaurant's success. Synergy Grill products allow a gas-saving of 59%, which makes them a great pick for a busy grilling venue. When you focus on cooking healthy, delicious meals for your customers, the fact your grill is not going to require frequent fat clean-up, such as the Synergy SG900 Gas chargrill is a great plus. Apart from this, all the grills from Synergy are safer to use, having no hot surfaces, except for the grill itself.
Roasting
Roasting is a popular cooking method usually used for large pieces of food, like entire chickens, lamb or beef chunks or turkeys. This doesn't mean you can't roast vegetables and fish. Cooking the food under dry heat, combined with seasonings and a little butter for getting that crispy outside is going to produce a delicious and flavourful meal, with a golden crust outside and a tender inside. Most chefs take advantage of the drippings from roasting to create amazing sauces for their dishes.
Roasting not only preserves the meat tender and juicy but also preserve its vitamins. When you cook a large chicken or turkey, accompanied by a decent amount of fruits and vegetables, knowing that your dish is going to be filled with vitamins and minerals makes it even more delicious.
To be able to create an amazing roasted lamb, beef or turkey you need a powerful, high-quality oven. Unox Cheftop combi ovens are just perfect for keeping up with a busy restaurant kitchen, without overcrowding it. Because they are combination ovens, your staff can roast and grill at the same time, knowing their dishes are going to come up perfectly cooked each time. The oven, especially a combination oven, which enables you to fry, bake, roast, grill and steam at the same time, is the key machine of a commercial kitchen, so browse all the models to find out which one best suits your needs.
Frying
Frying is all about the flavour and texture. When you ask someone if frying is healthy, they will probably say that it's not, but recent studies found that frying, to be more specific deep frying, actually revealed that vegetables release more antioxidants when fried than when boiled. Chefs love frying because it's a lot quicker than other cooking techniques and gives the food a tender feeling, as well as an amazing taste.
A freestanding electric fryer like the ones in the Valentine line is a must-have for all restaurant and fast food kitchens. All the fryers are designed to provide excellent results for all fried foods and come in a diverse range of sizes, suitable for all types of commercial kitchens.
Sous Vide
Sous vide is a less known cooking technique which provides excellent results. To cook sous vide you need to place the food in a vacuum-sealed bag and then dip it into boiling water. This cooking technique preserves all the vitamins and minerals of the food, and it doesn't allow burning. Meat remains tender and moist, while vegetables are crunchy and colourful.
To be able to cook flavourful, succulent dishes in sous vide your staff needs a high-quality water bath or sous vide machine. You can invest in a small unit or pick one that allows multiple ingredients to be prepared at the same time.
Boiling
Boiling is probably the simplest and the most common cooking techniques of all time. Our grandmothers used to boil food and the process of doing so hasn't changed much over the years. This cooking technique is used for any type of food, but studies revealed that fish, carrots and zucchini preserves most of its nutritional content when boiled. Stews, soups and pasta are some of the nation's comfort foods, which makes a boiling machine a must-have in your restaurant's kitchen.
Rational VarioCooking Center provides some of the most versatile cooking machines available on the market right now. One of their biggest advantages is that they can be used for multiple cooking techniques, from boiling to deep frying and braising. You can choose between a counter-top cooking machine and a freestanding one, depending on your needs.
