A commercial open hearth oven is a type of oven often used in restaurants, bakeries, and food service establishments for baking and cooking a variety of dishes. The open hearth design allows for even heat distribution and can create a unique cooking environment for different types of food.
Here are six major steam knowledge points related to a commercial open hearth oven:
Temperature Control: Properly controlling the temperature inside the oven is crucial for achieving consistent cooking results. Understanding how steam affects temperature regulation in the open hearth oven is essential.
Steam Injection: Steam injection in the oven can help improve the quality of baked goods by adding moisture at the right times during the baking process. Knowing when and how to inject steam can enhance crust development and overall texture.
Baking with Steam: Utilizing steam during baking can result in crustier bread, better color development, and improved rise in various baked goods. Learning how steam impacts different types of products is essential for creating high-quality baked items.
Cleaning and Maintenance: Proper cleaning and maintenance of the steam systems in the open hearth oven are essential for longevity and consistent performance. Regular descaling and inspection of steam components are necessary.
Safety Precautions: Understanding safety protocols when working with steam in a commercial oven is crucial to prevent accidents and injuries. Training staff on steam-related hazards and how to handle steam equipment safely is a key consideration.
Steam Recipes and Techniques: Exploring different steam recipes and techniques can help chefs and bakers innovate in their cooking methods. Understanding how to use steam creatively can lead to unique and delicious dishes.
- Correct understanding of steam
- Water is in three states: solid, gaseous, and liquid. Liquids above 100°C will vaporize to form gas, which is steam.
- When the steam is sprayed evenly on the surface of the dough, the heat will be conducted to the dough at an extremely fast speed.
- The principle of steam
- High-temperature steam quickly gelatinizes the surface of the dough, thereby maximizing the expansion of the dough and allowing the dough to fully extend in all directions.
- After the dough comes out of the oven, it encounters cold air and expands due to heat and contraction. The skin quickly shrinks into a crispy crust, so the outer tissue is crispy and the inner tissue is soft.
- Steam usage scenarios
- The dough is taken out of the fermentation box. At this time, the temperature of the center of the dough is very low, about 25°C-40°C.
- European-style bread requires a high temperature and humid environment. The oven preheating temperature is about 200°C-250°C. Using steam at this time can reduce the time for the dough to heat up. The hot steam hits the surface of the dough, and the internal gas expands rapidly and the volume is rapid. Enlarging is the key action for shaping bread.
- Steam usage range
- Needless to say, hard European buns and baguettes.
- Because soft European buns contain rich fillings, using steam can slow down the rise of the dough, making the finished product larger and more fluffy.
- Toast and sweet bread do not require steam.
- Tips for using steam
- Steam should be released immediately after entering the oven. The steam injection time can be roughly determined based on the size of the dough.
- During the first half of the baking process, be sure to close the damper and maintain the humidity in the oven cavity to ensure that the dough fully expands. Open the damper halfway through to slowly release excess moisture to ensure adequate coloring.
- Disadvantages of insufficient/excess steam
- Insufficient steam, the dough skin extension time is too short, the volume is small, and the extension is not enough, resulting in the finished product being flat, the surface is not shiny, and beautiful ears cannot be formed.
- Tips: Make sure the water pipe can absorb water before entering the furnace, otherwise the water pump cannot absorb water and will not be able to emit steam.
