5 Food Preparation Equipment You Should Be Using

Food preparation equipment are essential pieces of machinery/utensils that are used in everyday cooking and baking. Food prepping is the concept of preparing a batch of food/meals ahead of schedule in an attempt to save time and cut costs. This can be applied to both bakery settings or for individuals at home. When applied to the latter, food prep equipment can help people achieve their nutritional goals due them having complete control over what they consume which leads to more healthier meal choices in the long term. As such, we have listed 5 food preparation equipment you should be using in bakeries or in the comfort of your own home.

Cutting Board 

First on our list of food preparation equipment you should be using today we have a cutting board. These ever so common utensils are utilised in many cooking/baking scenarios across the globe. Cutting boards are typically manufactured using wood, wood laminate or plastic materials and are generally used as a surface for cutting, slicing and chopping food. It is important to note that cutting boards can be purchased in many different colours to adhere to hygiene and cross contamination protocol. This is because wood has a tendency to retain food particles or absorb moisture that can cause bacteria growth if not washed thoroughly after use. This is particularly important when you are tasked to prep raw meat, poultry and fish etc. 

Image credit: Wooden Earth Ltd https://www.woodenearth.com/

Ingredient Storage Bin  

Next on our list of food preparation equipment you should be using is more suitable for a bakery setting than at home and it refers to an ingredient storage bin. These handy means of storage are ideal to store dry food in a safe container which can be easily accessed. They are designed to fit under standard sized work tables for maximisation of your working area in your bakery. Furthermore, most ingredient storage bins are mounted with castors for easy relocation purposes no matter how large or small your bakery is. Their storage capacity can range anywhere from 24 Litres for a single container and up to 118 Litres of ingredients for larger bins. While ideal for bakeries as stated earlier, smaller ingredient storage bins can be a perfect solution for your storage needs in your home kitchen as they can reserve:

• Flours
• Salt/Sugars
• Rices
• Pasta
• Beans
• Whole grains
• Spices
• Dried fruits

Utility Knife 

A utility knife is a type of cutting equipment that is slightly smaller and slimmer than the common chef’s knife you see in kitchens and bakeries. Because of its stature, it makes them perfect for preparing smaller food items and excels in a plethora of everyday tasks. Where more intricate and finer detailed chopping is required, or the general chopping of ingredients such as fruit and vegetables, a utility knife definitely thrives. Manufactured with sharp and sometimes serrated blades, a utility knife possesses a study plastic handle which provides you with comfort while you prepare food. Ultimately, when your chef’s knife is a little too big for the job at hand, you’ll want to reach for a utility knife instead as the next best alternative. 

Scissors 

Kitchen scissors are a heavily underused means of preparing food and it is interesting that people don’t incorporate them as much as they should do at home. Kitchen scissors are highly versatile but its sole purpose is to quickly and efficiently open food packaging. This is absolutely pivotal in today’s society as having strong hygiene standards is something which is becoming more and more necessary when preparing food. This is where kitchen scissors excels as it eliminates the possibility of contaminated hands from coming into contact with your ingredients. This reduces the chance of users becoming unwell when prepping food which is obviously a highly sought after benefit which people often seek. Furthermore, the scissors can be used to snip herbs and break down poultry which only adds to their versatility around the kitchen.

It is highly recommended that you find a solid pair of scissors that can be easily taken apart, can be sharpened, lightweight and comfortable to handle for the best results. Finally, as an extra hygiene precaution, it is advised to purchase a pair of kitchen scissors that are colour coded to reduce risk of mixing with unclean utensils in bakeries or around your home. 

Bread Slicers 

The final food preparation cutting equipment we will discuss in this article definitely applies more to a professional bakery setting and it relates to bread slicers. Bread slicers can be manufactured to be manual, semi-automatic, belt-fed and automatic with a variety of different functions and sizes. If you purchase a loaf of bread, very rarely will it be pre-cut. In addition, it can be incredibly time consuming to cut bread into slices, not to mention, it is near impossible to slice the bread at the exact same measurements every time. This can lead to your bread looking inconsistent which is obviously not ideal when prepping food. This is where bread slicers, and more specifically the automatic variants, come into play.

Bread slicers are exceptional at offering you perfectly sliced bread each and every time they are used. It greatly improves speed and time efficiency as the bread can be fed through the machine with absolute ease and within seconds, you will have uniform bread which can be ready to use for your next food prepping task.