How do you store ready-made food over several hours or days?

Storing ready-to-eat food over several hours or days requires careful planning and compliance with food safety standards to ensure that the food remains fresh, tasty and safe to eat.

The traditional method

A lot has happened in professional food storage in recent years, but first we can review the traditional guidelines for storing ready-made food:

1. Cooling/freezing

If the dish is not to be served immediately, it must be cooled as quickly as possible to prevent bacterial growth. Use a blast chiller to emergency cool the food as quickly as possible, then place it in a refrigerator at a safe temperature of 4°C or below. If you want to store the food for several days, consider freezing it.

2. Covering

Food should be covered or wrapped in airtight containers or foil to prevent outside contamination and to retain moisture.

3. Marking and date marking

Clearly labeling the dishes with the name, date and time of preparation is important to ensure that they are not stored for too long and become too old.

4. Separate storage

Store different dishes separately to prevent cross-contamination. Use different containers or storage areas for meat, fish, vegetables, etc.

5. Hygiene practices

Always keep hands and work areas clean to prevent contamination of the food. Use disposable gloves when handling food and make sure to wash your hands thoroughly between tasks.

6. Warming up

If the dish is to be served later, it must be thoroughly heated to the correct serving temperature before serving to ensure that it is hot and ready to eat.

7. Regular inspection

Check the temperature of the refrigerator regularly to ensure that it remains within safe limits. Discard any dishes that have been stored too long or have exceeded their shelf life.

When you follow these guidelines, you can store prepared foods safely and maintain their quality over many hours until they are ready to be served. It is important to pay attention to food safety and comply with applicable standards and regulations.

In the graph below you see the process in the traditional method. It is clearly seen that this process requires more time and more energy to cool and then heat the food. In addition, some changes occur in the structure of the food when you cool/freeze and then heat the food.

The modern and smartest method

The Italian oven manufacturer, Unox, has in recent years revolutionized the way canteens, restaurants and other professional food companies store food.

Unox launched Evereo - The Hot Fridge in 2018 and has since won several awards for its extraordinary features.

Evereo is a type of advanced warming cabinet that allows you to store, heat and serve food in a safe and practical way over several hours or even days. In addition, you can roast in it for a long time and achieve better results than in a professional combi oven .

Here you can see the steps to store food with an Unox Evereo.

1. Preparation of the food

Prepare your food as usual and make sure it is cooked and ready to be stored.

Place the food in the Evereo container

Transfer the prepared food to a suitable container or tray compatible with the Evereo system. You can use ordinary gastro trays if you only want to store the food for a few hours, but if you want to be able to store the food for up to 72 hours, you must use a Multi.Day tray or Multi.Day bags, which can be vacuum-treated.

Set temperature and time

Select the desired storage temperature and time on the display according to the recommended guidelines for the specific type of food you are storing.

Storage

Place the container with the food in the Evereo.

Supervision

Regularly monitor the temperature and condition of the Unox Evereo unit to ensure food is stored correctly and safely. If necessary, adjust the temperature or time as needed. You can use the free App to log information, which you can use as evidence against the Danish Food Agency.

Serving

When the food is to be served, it can easily be removed from the Evereo and served directly to the customers. You do not need to transfer the food to other containers or heating devices. But you can optionally give the food a few minutes in a hut oven such as Unox Speed-X to increase the temperature slightly or to give a more baked surface.

By following these steps, Unox Evereo can help store food in a safe and convenient way for several hours or even days, while maintaining its quality and freshness. It is important to follow the manufacturer's recommendations and guidelines for proper use and maintenance of the Unox Evereo system.

In the graph below, it is clearly seen that this process is much simpler than the traditional way of storing food. It is cheaper and less time-consuming because the food is at serving temperature when you take it out of the Evereo.

Advantages of the modern method:

1. There is no food waste.
2. You can make a restaurant without a kitchen. (scalable)
3. You get energy savings (uses less energy than a freezer).
4. You get lower labor costs, as you can prepare the food on weekdays and when it is not busy.
5. You save approx. 10 minutes per serving compared to normal reheating of dishes.
6. Make long-term fried dishes at a constant temperature.

The difference in how much time you spend serving