Find the Right Baking Equipment for Your Kitchen

Whether you are looking to open a new business, expand your existing one or simply replace some old equipment, finding the right professional baking equipment can be a daunting task. When choosing your equipment it’s important to keep in mind not just what you need to produce, but how much of it since these details will help you make your decision much easier. Here are some tips and suggestions to help you find the best bakery equipment for your needs.

Dough Preparation

Having properly mixed dough is key to running any successful bakery. While a very small or artisan bakery might prefer to mix their dough by hand, a commercial bakery will need to have at least one if not multiple dough mixers.

Commercial Dough Mixers

Most mid to large bakeries will have several large planetary mixers and a small counter-top mixer on their floor at all times. The large mixers are used for keeping up the pace of the bakery while smaller mixers are used for small tasks such as preparing icing. Planetary mixers range from small, 5 qt. ones all the way up to 100+ qt.

Dough Dividers and Sheeters

Dough dividers are very useful when it comes to baking quickly, they help divide the dough into equal parts and make sure that they are all the same. The dough sheeters then take a ball of dough and roll and stretch it to the required size, depending on the goods you are trying to bake.

Holding/Proofing

When proofing bread dough, you are letting it rise before baking. The best way for dough to rise is in warm, humid environments and for this purpose you should look into proofing cabinets. This piece of professional baking equipment is designed to raise the temperature and humidity and hold it long enough for the dough to rise.

Baking

No bakery is complete without a proper oven and there is no shortage of options when trying to find the right one. Much like purchasing a mixer, you should know exactly what you are going to be making and how much of it, because these factors are very important and will influence your choice of oven.

Convection Ovens

These types of ovens are among the most frequently used ovens in the commercial baking industry. They do a wonderful job at quickly and evenly baking a wide variety of goods, anything from bread loaves to cookies, cakes, pies, brownies, you name it. Convection ovens are also the cheapest commercial ovens available right now.

Deck Ovens

These types of ovens are preferred by many artisan-style bakers and anyone who makes a specific type of bread. Their stone cooking decks allow for a nice crispy crust, while maintaining a soft and moist inside. The only problem with these types of ovens is that they take up too much space. However, because of their simple design and few working parts these ovens can last a long time.

Roll-in Rack Ovens

These ovens are very similar to roll-in refrigerator or proofing cabinets in the way that you can roll a pan rack full of goods right into the oven for baking. These models of ovens are designed for efficiency and quick baking and you can save even more time by combining your oven with a roll-in cabinet. Simply roll the pans full of products onto the rack in order to proof them and then roll them into the oven for baking.