We all know a good workman shouldn’t blame his tools, but there are just some tools of the trade that top chefs say they simply can’t be without. However, it’s not merely enough to have the latest and greatest state of the art equipment, it must be cost-effective and tailor made for the job.
Executive chef of the newly opened Hilton Queenstown twin hotel complex, Frenchman Frederic Monnier says some operators are driven by price but in the end it will cost them more. “I’ve worked in kitchens where new equipment would give us more of a problem than what we had before.”
For example, dishwashers incapable of the capacity needed for the restaurants or brat pans capable of cooking 20 kgs of meat on a stove that doesn’t put out enough heat to reach the pan’s full capabilities.
Monnier, like all chefs, would never be without his combi-ovens. His Convotherm and Rational ovens have saved him countless hours in the kitchen, turning out perfect pre-programmed recipes every time. The added bonus is they’re self-cleaning.
His 20-tray ‘top of the line’ combi-oven is a must-have in his production kitchen used for bulk preparation for the Hilton’s three front-of-house show kitchens, as is a blast chiller.
“I can cook a big bolognaise, 20kg of sauce then blast chill it and drop the temperature to under four degrees in four hours so it’s safe and hygienic, and there’s no bacteria. Then I use my vacuum machine, put it into bags and it’s sealed and a lot fresher.”
Good blenders, a decent mincer for making a terrine or shumai dumplings and pasta machines – very useful for making wontons thinner – are all right up there. Smiling in agreement over in the theatre-style show kitchen at the new Hilton’s Me and Mee Noodle bar is the Chinese chef, who “knows his stuff and is teaching the others,” says Monnier.
The popular advent of new theatre-style show kitchens has introduced a whole new dimension to kitchen design and functionality. Layout is absolutely vital as is function and flow if those on the cooking ‘stage’ are to suitably impress their theatre audience.
“Customers don’t want to see a big shambles and stress because everyone is crossing over each other,” says Monnier. “Chefs have to be very mindful of their gestures in front-of-house (show) kitchens. It does put stress and pressure on you as the guests want to chat, but you need to have one person leading the team and taking control of the kitchen.”
Television cooking shows have sparked this new trend for customers to watch, learn and talk about their meal over the counter while the culinary wizards perform. As a result it’s become extremely important to prioritise space.
Monnier and head chef at the Hilton’s five-star Wakatipu Grill, Peter Thornley of Auckland’s Kermadec fame, have opted for under bench fridge drawers. It’s vital to have a system where all their pre-prepared foods are ready in each drawer in order; the likes of pre-blanched noodles, pork already fried, so when an order comes in the chefs can grab it quickly.
“It so important to have good functioning storage at the front and enough space so the counter does not have a big pile of food visible on top, but there’s still a bit of action for the guests,” says Monnier.
The new Novotel Auckland Airport Hotel’s executive chef Ajay Zalte agrees kitchen flow is vital, from his cold larder and dessert section at one end through to the entremets, vegetables and accompaniments, the grill and sauce section, then finally the room service, food pick-up area and final plating up area and pass for the a la carte meals.
Zalte went for the latest equipment provided by Southern Hospitality along with the design. He says he would not be without his pacojet and sous-vide hot water bath. “I put my meat, fish or vegetables in there in a vacuum sealed bag and it cooks them to perfection, they come out fresh and crispy, but cooked slow and tender on the inside.”
It’s a perfect system for cooking salmon with olive oil, salt and pepper and a few vanilla beans added, all placed in a vacuum-packed bag and cooked slowly to perfection: “It melts in your mouth,” says Zalte.
These latest kitchen technologies can add a new dimension and innovation to cooking. Zalte would also never be without a good large stick blender capable of blending 20kgs of soup at once. It’s a great time saver.
Zalte says we have television cooking shows to thank for the new theatre-style cooking and it has not only made it more essential to have great flow in your kitchen design, but has encouraged chefs to maintain higher levels of cleanliness.
“People are getting more into watching chefs cooking, they’re enjoying it and the customer enjoys their meal more than something that has been prepared out the back. It ensures proper hygiene and people can see this. It’s a great way to showcase food.”
“But if you have the wrong service flow then the food isn’t going to come out tops.”
Each chef has a role to play in their section of his culinary stage, with Zalte at the end “plating up” the meals and dressing each dish with his final garnish and finishing touches.
He has even carried that finishing touch right through to the Novotel’s specially designed bread boards, designed to fit the horopito bread sticks on his menu with special grooves to hold the sauces and accompaniments.
“Your menu should revolve around and complement how your kitchen is designed – our menus have been designed to add functionality to our kitchen.”
For Scottish chef Brian Campbell, who has long been Thornley’s right-hand man and pastry chef, formerly at Bracu and Kermadec, and now the Hilton, ice cream is his passion and pacojet his pet. “It’s my favourite ice cream machine – I can make portion by portion to order so there’s no wastage and I can whip cream, make ice cream, purees – it’s quite versatile.”
Campbell is renowned for his innovative desserts, including yoghurt and ice creams inserted into a frozen balloon.
Mint Dining Room’s Grant Dicker swears he too would never be without his Robo Coup ice cream machine. A smaller individual operator, he can make his own delicious bombay sapphire and blackcurrant sorbet or condensed milk ice cream for just $4 a litre.
“I can’t afford new technology, I just do good old fashioned cooking, but I couldn’t do without my induction hobbs and my ice cream machine,” says Dicker.
Intercontinental Wellington’s executive chef Edmond Weicherding is dreaming of a new kitchen. It’s on the hotel’s wish-list but in tight economic times the owners need to be convinced. For the time being Weicherding continues to take good care of the equipment he’s got and the kitchen, which remains unaltered from the 1986 opening. Regular maintenance and cleaning checks of any equipment are vital in maximising life, production and cost efficiencies.
“I cook with a lot of really good equipment but I really look after it. I have an old (Hobart) fan oven, realistically it’s probably 25 years old, but it’s extremely good – it always works. There’s no technology in there that can break.”
Moffat New Zealand national sales manager Brian Davies says there have not been any huge technological advancements in kitchen equipment during the past 12 months but more busy kitchens are opting for appliances to be mounted on plinths rather than rollers or casters. There’s no 150mm gap under your appliances. It’s more hygienic and easier to clean.
With the advent of show kitchens there’s also more demand for island suites to house appliances rather than a line-up against a rear wall. “It looks better and people (customers) can see what’s going on.”
For the same reason there’s increased demand for fridge drawers.
Target top ranges are also becoming popular – they’re very much a European style cooking surface, but instead of four to eight gas burners the target top offers one large ‘bulls eye’ burner. “It’s very hot in the centre ring and as you bring the pots out toward the edge there’s more of a simmering zone.”
The flat surface also allows busy kitchens to use smaller pots and more of them.
A must-have for many cafes is the Turbochef high speed microwave convection oven, which is faster and more efficient for heating the likes of quiches, frittatas and paninis.
“It’s the quality of food cooked in them and the space you’re saving. It’s a convection and steamer in one unit, a very versatile piece of kit. Any chef worth his salt who’s worked with one will design a kitchen with one of these,” says Davies.