Buy commercial fryers: how to choose the sizes?

It is undeniable that one of the factors for the success of the fast-food industry is equipment. Commercial induction fryer has always been a hot-selling category in Lestov induction cookers.

We reviewed the inquiries related to the fryer. The main questions asked by restaurant and commercial owners were:

(1) "What size fryer do I need?"

(2) "Freestanding or desktop fryer, which one do I need?"

(3) "How long does it take to raise the normal temperature oil to 190°C?"

Part 1: What size commercial fryer should I need?

Because the space in restaurants is limited, when considering adding fryer equipment, we should return to the essential item -"How it will be used".

To answer this question, the most straightforward way is to break down the menu and look for the following:

(1) How the cooking oil is used: independent or shared?

(2) Frying temperature and time: do they need to be set separately?

(3) The state of the food: fresh or frozen?

What are your most frequently fried menu items? French fries, chicken wings, fish or meat skewers and more tasty snacks are options on most menus. More choices mean you may need to consider using separate cooking oil, which can be achieved through a separate frying bar. The purpose of this is to avoid cross-contamination of oil and affect the final taste of the food. If you only need to fry one type of food, such as fried chicken wings or chicken racks, you usually only consider fryer equipment that takes up less space.

We all like to enjoy fried food from time to time, enjoying its fragrance and tender texture on the outside. But in order to achieve a better taste, the correct temperature control is crucial. If you need to set different temperatures and times for different menu items, then just relying on a thermostat device is not enough. The chef also has no patience to reset the machine during the cooking process. In this case, the function of a commercial fryer is a key factor to consider. You should ask the manufacturer whether it is possible to set the temperature and time separately for the menu on a control panel.

Frozen food takes longer to frying. Based on frozen food, you need to consider a commercial deep fryer with higher power and larger capacity. Higher rated power means faster heating time. The capacity will directly affect the size of the fryer. 

Generally speaking, the amount of food that a fryer can actually cook in one hour is about twice the amount of oil it contains. As a restaurant operator, you need to consider your seating capacity and table turnover further to determine the number of servings per hour you will be frying.

Reminder: Frozen food must not be fried directly in the pan. The thawed food needs to be put in small quantities in batches. Otherwise, the oil temperature will drop sharply, and the food may stick together.

 Part 2: do I need a commercial countertop fryer or freestanding fryer?

There are two standard types of fryers at the Lestov factory-Table Top Commercial Deep Fryers (220V) & Freestanding Commercial Deep Fryers (380V). Before buying, you must refer to the size of the commercial kitchen.

For compact kitchens, a tabletop commercial fryer is the best choice. But they will not be able to keep up with the continuous and large batches of dishes.

The freestanding deep fryer is usually the most popular. Despite the need for more kitchen space, the upstanding induction fryer has a higher output power and can heat and fry many foods (corn dogs, French fries, dough, fish, egg rolls, fried potatoes, and even chicken). You can also customize the fryer size and number of baskets to meet your needs. For restaurants with high table turnover, this would be a wise purchasing decision. It is worth mentioning that the commercial induction fryer helps to keep the restaurant cool and save air conditioning costs because the Electromagnetic induction technology can directly heat the pan without dissipating more heat.

Part 3: How long does it take to raise the normal temperature oil to 190°C?

It involves a professional term "smoke point." The smoke point of the oil is the temperature where the oil begins to decompose and emit visible smoke (smoke). Petroleum begins to deteriorate, producing the annoying compound acrolein.

190°C is a critical frying temperature. Take the most commonly used olive oil as an example. Its usual smoke point is 190°C (375°F). It is easy to fry by keeping the temperature at 190°C. Preheat the oil to about 7 to 8 °C (15 F) higher than its optimal deep-frying temperature, the molecular structure of the oil can still be protected. Consider the useful life of the oil, to know the smoke point can save you much money. More professionally, 190°C is also the limiting value of the international EU CE certification standard.

Remember, you should buy deep fat fryer equipment from a professional manufacturer-with thermostat system and overheating protection program. Otherwise, it will significantly affect the service life of your equipment and the function of the kitchen.

Back to the question of "how long." The temperature-rise time is directly related to the power of the fryer and the volume of oil. The difference in food composition and weight will also cause changes in its maturity time. 

Please watch the below video to get the inspiration (Video source: taken by the commercial induction hob manufacturer - Lestov team).

The video experiment conclusion:

(A) It took about 20 minutes to heat 10 liters of oil (32°C at room temperature) to 170°C.

(B) Put 2 kg of chicken wings (initial temperature after thawing: 27.5°C) into the fryer at 170°C, and take out the golden fried chicken wings in about 7 minutes.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lVzr2iaFUc 

We hope that you can buy a suitable fryer according to your needs and kitchen space. Lestov experts will provide you with all models and buying guides. Whether you are buying for the first time or upgrading your current equipment, you can have confidence in yourself.