Blast Chillers: Ensuring Food Safety and Quality

Posted 2024-03-12 07:02:34

What are Blast Chillers?

Blast chillers, also known as shock freezers or blast freezing tunnels, are industrial food preparation appliances that allow rapid and precise cooling of cooked foods using a blast of cold air. They help reduce the temperature of hot foods cooked in commercial kitchens from +90°C to +3°C or below in a very short span of 90-120 minutes. This rapid cooling prevents the proliferation of harmful bacteria in the 'danger zone' between +5°C and +63°C, where bacteria multiply quickly.

Working Mechanism of Blast Chillers

Blast Chillers have a refrigeration system that circulates chilled air at very low temperatures, usually between -35°C to -40°C, inside an insulated chamber. The hot food is placed on mobile racks or mobile containers that are loaded inside this cold chamber. Fans inside the chamber ensure uniform circulation of cold air around the food at very high velocities, typically 5-10 meters/second. This blast of cold air enables ultra-fast extraction of heat from the surface and core of the food via two methods - convection and respiration. Within 1-2 hours, the core temperature of the largest food item drops below +3°C, making it safe for storage from a food safety perspective.

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