Bars, restaurants, cafes, and other similar establishments have to maximise refrigeration units to keep their food products fresh and intact. These units are likewise utilised in supermarkets, groceries, and other retail stores.
One thing that makes refrigeration units effective is they can maintain cold temperatures inside their storage spaces. And with proper cleaning and maintenance, they can conveniently prevent bacteria, germs, and other microbes from infiltrating the food products. They can likewise simplify the storage and organisation of the products before they will be used or sold.
If you are in the food service industry, you must ensure that your commercial refrigerators will be efficient all the time. And one way to do this is to store your food items properly. Here are some things you can do to maintain proper food storage.
Know the Temperature Danger Zone
Food poisoning microbes can grow and multiply quickly whenever they are in areas with temperatures of 5 to 60 degrees Celsius. And once high-risk food products like raw and cooked meat, dairy products, eggs, and seafood are exposed to these temperatures, they can easily get spoiled right away. To preserve the quality of your food items, you must maintain the temperatures of your refrigeration units below 5 degrees Celsius.
Cool Any Cooked Food First
Some business owners allow hot food to be stored inside the refrigerator. Doing this, unfortunately, will only affect the performance of the refrigeration units. It can also spoil other food items that are close to the newly cooked food. If you want to cool some cooked food, you must separate them into smaller portions over shallow dishes first. This method can help cool the cooked food by being exposed to room temperature. Once the food stops generating steam, you can now store them inside your refrigeration unit.
Separate Raw and Cooked Food
Raw food items still have some bacteria since they are not yet cooked. Once cooked, any bacteria they used to contain are expected to be eliminated. Now, if you are thinking of storing raw foods and cooked foods together, you may want to stop it from happening. Storing them together will only allow bacteria from the raw foods to contaminate the cooked ones. The latter may then get spoiled, which can later affect others. When storing raw foods, you must seal them or put them in containers. They must also be placed below cooked foods.
Use the Right Set of Containers
The efficiency of your commercial refrigerators can also be enhanced once you utilise the right set of food containers. Containers are crucial in food storage since they can ensure that your food items will not easily mix with others. They can also keep liquid from dripping and causing damage to other stored products. To pick one, you must ensure that they are non-toxic. They must also be clean and in pristine condition. Upon obtaining these types of containers, you must use them to store raw foods, cooked foods, and any content from opened cans.
Aside from keeping your commercial refrigerators efficient, doing these storage tips can prevent food-related issues that may only affect the reputation of your business. If you need some servicing with your refrigeration units, you can contact us at P&R Commercial Refrigeration.
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