Keeping Food Warm Safely - Big Festival Coming Up

by Cath
(Portishead)

Hi

I own a catering trailer on a permanent pitch. This weekend there is a huge festival happening right on my work doorstep.

Normally, everything i make I cook to order, apart from sausages which i cook a batch of and keep warm in a bain marie and as and when needed i take them out, and split them length-ways on the griddle to crisp up/thoroughly heat through.

I'm in a bit of a panic about Burgers, as these are normally cooked to order. This isn't going to be practical with the number of people attending. How can i go about cooking some off, keeping them warm and reheating to order - i'm terrified i'm going to poison someone if i do it incorrectly.

Any advice would be gratefully received!

Cath

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Sep 16, 2013
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starstarstarstarstar 		Keeping food warm
by: Anonymous

Hi I have my own lay by and cook some food in advance during busy times.What I do is have a saucepan with a glass lid on the corner of the grill cook some sausages etc... And put them in the saucepan with the food probe checking that the temp is 63+.grab them out when needed and give them a flash fry.The trick is keeping all cooked food at 63+ also doing it this way saves running a separate ban marie which saves on gas.Also run a electric kettle instead of a tea urn thus saves a lot of gas.
Jul 25, 2013
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starstarstarstarstar 		Cooking For Large Crowds
by: David

Hi Cath,

I would consider either renting an extra Bain Marie for the weekend or use the existing one if big enough. Just cook a batch and place in the Bain Marie ready to serve. Also depending on the size of the griddle you can also part cook them on it, and leave on a slow flame to finish off when needed (turn flame up).

As for temperature, if you are concerned use a food temperature probe to check for the right temperature before they go out to the customer. I use to do this all the time and I customers would generally be impressed that you are taking this seriously.

The thing to remember is to take your time and make sure each food item is cooked thoroughly and to the right temperature. I know this can put you under some pressure especially if there are a lot of people, but just mention to them that its freshly cooked and you don’t want to risk giving them a half cooked burger.
Best of luck,
David

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