PAN CLEANER CHALLENGE – ATHENAS
What Nick Says:
“I tried to clean my pans a few years ago and I remember being worried about damaging the metal. Because of this, I used a weak cleaning agent and managed to take a little bit of carbon off.
“Washing the pans is not a desirable job, but it was bothering me that I am trying to serve the best fish and chips I can and I am using the best oil I can, but the pans were getting worse and worse. I am pretty pleased by my tests with the Ceres Deep Fryer Cleaner. It took off all of the thick, hard carbon and sticky layers, but didn’t remove any protective layers on the metal.
“After this, I will be doing a boil out every eight weeks or so using less of the Ceres Deep Fryer Cleaner. I think it pays to have clean pans.”
Photos
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1″ HEAVY DUTY SCRAPER£ 4.00 Excl VAT -
Ceres Deep Fryer Cleaner£ 45.00 Excl VAT -
SUPER ABSORBENT CLOTH x 30£ 54.00 Excl VAT
Introduction
| Frying Range | Age | Pan Metal |
|---|---|---|
| Florigo | 6 Years | Stainless Steel |
Nick has had this Florigo frying range for approximately six years, he has four pans, and they have all been worked very hard. He fries in groundnut oil which is more susceptible to polymerisation (sticky surface). Even with general cleaning this is difficult to remove because it can go tacky.
Nick’s pans are stainless steel so he has always had a fear of ruining the metal. A couple of years ago, he did try a boil out with soda crystals but there was no noticeable difference.
As you will see in the photos below, the pans were perfectly fine and useable, but they needed a good clean. You can also see how the carbon is hard but also soft and ‘wet’ in places as this is what liquid oils do after use.
What we did
We emptied all of the oils via the inbuilt filtration system and popped them into empty oil containers.
We filled up all the pans with water, going above the minimum oil line that the manufacturer recommends but not close to the maximum line. We plugged the return pipes of the filtration system to reduce the amount of water and steam build up. We set the thermostat to 96°C, and after 60°C we added 250g of Ceres Deep Fryer Cleaner to each pan of water and gave the water a good stir with the spider.
It is crucial to note that we never left the range, not even for a minute, because a minute becomes another minute. This job needs to be hands-on.
All the pans had a 45 minute boil and a 15 minute rest period after turning off the gas. We then discarded the water one pan at a time and, as we went lower, we would scrub lightly with a flexible scraper and a non-scratch stainless steel scouring ball. The carbon and ‘oily’ deposits fell away with a bit of elbow grease as the boil and solution softened it.
We then took out the filter tray and placed a large gastronorm tray under the filter pipes before opening all the valves and emptying the tiny amount of water left behind. We used a Ceres Super-Absorbent Cloth to wipe up all the moisture, then using a little of the oil from the containers we saved earlier, rubbed it into the pans with the Ceres Super-Absorbent Cloths.
Note, pump some oil into the pan from the filtration – this pushes out moisture that may have accumulated – but leave the valve open so the oily watery residue falls into the gastronorm.
After this, we closed the pans, filled up with oil and got up to 120°C and dropped through the filtration system and a fresh filter pad.
Conclusion
As you can see from the photos there is a remarkable difference. What we found in doing this is that the chip pans seem to take more of a beating than the fish pans. The Ceres Deep Fryer Cleaner is pretty flexible so you can look at the pan in question and, if you are cleaning a heavily soiled pan, you can add more and boil for a touch longer.
